1989
by CassyR5
Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off 1989 by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter. Complete.
1. Welcome to New York

**Summary: "She has a feeling she just entered a whole new world right here in New York City, and she's sure she'll never want to leave it behind." Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off 1989 by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: So, this is a story I've been working on a lot for the past month. I got the concept for it after hearing about a Girl Meets World fanfiction that did the same thing. I really liked the idea, so I wanted to try it out myself. Also, I thought this would be a fun way to tackle my question of how Austin & Ally would've met if Ally never got stage fright and did end up going to MUNY. This is still obviously AU, but I do wonder if this could've happened if things had gone differently. So yeah.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ and by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Welcome to New York:  
 _"We begin our story in New York."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

She can't believe it.

She's here, yet she still can't believe it.

As she steps inside the apartment that will be hers for the next four years, she can hardly contain her excitement knowing what brought her here. Knowing that MUNY, her dream school for nearly her whole life, accepted her and wants to study with her. _MUNY_ wants _her_. She can't believe it.

She sets her bags by the door and takes a tentative step inside to look around her new home – well, part of her new home, anyway. She imagines she'll be spending most of her time in the school itself as opposed to here. Surrounded by all that music and talent, she knows she'll love it.

Right inside the apartment, the first thing she sees is the living room. She's pleased to see a piano already present – probably from the school – and runs her fingers gently along the keys. It reminds her of the day she auditioned for this school. She was extremely nervous, but her dad reassured her that she was much too talented to not make it (and also reminded her of now many times she'd rehearsed and how little she messed up). And he was right. Once her fingers touched those all-too familiar keys, she felt like she was back in her room at home, and the music just flowed from her. Seeing the face of the man that was holding the audition, how hard he was trying to not look too impressed, she knew her dad was right to think she'd get in. But even then, that letter of acceptance still managed to take her by surprise.

Now, she walks away from the piano and turns around, stepping into the kitchen. She only takes a quick look around, knowing she'll probably be eating a lot of take out and cafeteria food (she was never the greatest cook), then steps into the hallway where her bedroom and bathroom are.

As she's looking around her bedroom, she hears the door to the apartment – sorry, _her_ apartment – open, and smiles, knowing exactly who it is. She walks out of the room and towards the front door, glad to see her dad standing there with the last of her things.

He holds up her house key and tosses it to her, grinning when she catches and pockets it.

"Impressive," he says. "I remember you used to be such a klutz when you where little, always dropping things or knocking something over."

She shrugs. "Guess things change as you grow up."

He nods. "Guess so." He pauses, chuckling. "MUNY. Living in New York all alone. You really have grown up, huh? When did that happen?"

She just shrugs again, unsure of how to respond.

"I'm really gonna miss you, dear. But I'm so proud of you."

She smiles, then walks into her dad's open arms and hugs him close.

"Thanks, Dad," she says. "I'm really gonna miss you, too. I love you."

"I love you, too," he says, then pulls away. "Have an incredible first day next week. Don't forget to call and tell me how it goes, though I'm sure it'll be everything you could ever imagine."

She nods. "I will," she says, and with one more hug and a final wave goodbye, he walks out the door, leaving Ally on her own for the first time in her entire life. But despite all her jitters about starting school in a new city next week, she can't contain her excitement anymore. Because she's in New York at MUNY, and she thinks she's finally made it.

* * *

Before school starts, she decides to take a small tour around the area in which she'll be living. Her apartment is only a block away from MUNY, but past that is where the city really begins. So, a few days after she's moved in, she walks downtown in the direction of her new school. But she doesn't stop there.

There's so much to see in New York. She passes by so many different stores and restaurants, as well as people on bikes and in cars on the busy streets and sidewalks. The whole city is just bursting with life. She can't get enough of it.

After about an hour of walking through the city and browsing around a couple stores, she spots a restaurant that stands out to her. The Stardust Diner **(1)**. The name is familiar to her, yet she doesn't know why. When she steps inside, she remembers.

Stardust Diner was a restaurant her dad told her about. When he visited New York as a kid, it was his favourite place to get a meal. He loved it so much because the waitstaff were also singers. Apparently, all the workers were people wanting to get a chance to go on Broadway, and this was one of the ways they could. So, who better to go inside than a musician like herself?

After finding a seat, she browses the menu in front of her. A few minutes later, a waitress approaches her and introduces herself as Cassidy. She quickly orders, and after ten minutes pass, her meal comes. It's only as Cassidy comes by to ask how her meal is when things get interesting.

"So, I couldn't help but notice that your phone case is a set of piano keys," she says. "Are you a singer, too?"

She nods. "Yeah, actually," she replies. "It's kinda why I'm here in the first place."

"This restaurant or the city?" Cassidy jokes, and they laugh.

"New York," she answers. "I'm attending MUNY this year."

Cassidy smiles widely. "Are you really?" When she nods in response, Cassidy says, "No way! So am I."

"Really?" she asks.

"Yeah. I've been singing since I was a kid. I grew up in New York, so the second I was old enough, I applied to work here. I just love Broadway. But until I book my own show, I have to attend school," she explains. "What about you?"

"Kinda the same," she starts. "I grew up with music. I started playing piano when I five, and then my dad opened a music store in my home town, and it escalated. Now I'm here."

"That's pretty exciting," Cassidy says. She starts to walk away, but then stops. "What did you say your name was?"

"I didn't," she replies. "I'm Ally. Ally Dawson."

"Ally Dawson," she repeats. "Sounds like the name of a performer. Well, it was nice to meet you, Ally. Maybe we'll see more of each other at school."

"Maybe," Ally replies, but she smiles. She likes Cassidy, and she's glad to know someone before school begins in less than a week. Maybe it really will be everything she could ever imagine, just like her dad said.

* * *

A few days later, she steps into her first class of the day – Advanced Piano Lessons. It's not too big of a class, maybe ten or twelve students, but it's big enough to make her nervous, especially when she realizes that there's no one here she knows (maybe Cassidy isn't a piano player like she is?).

Quickly, she chooses a vacant seat at the front of the room and waits for the teacher to arrive. Ten minutes later, she does.

"Hello, class," she says, receiving a chorus of "hello's" back in response. She smiles. "I'm Mrs. Collins, and I will be your professor on Advanced Piano Lessons for this semester."

Pulling a list out of the folder in her hand, she reads over it silently before continuing, "Before we get started, I would like to hear each of you play a little piano for us so I know where everyone is at in their playing skills. It can be any song you want, including an original.

"So, would anyone like to go first?"

The class stays silent at this, everyone looking around to see if someone might be volunteering. No one does.

"Okay," Mrs. Collins mutters. "I guess I'll just choose." Looking back down at the list, she skims it a couple times before finally saying, "Ally Dawson."

Ally sits up suddenly, shocked. Being picked first is not something she's used to unless she's raising her hand to answer a question, and any other time she doesn't like it. But everyone noticed her sudden movement, so there's no way of pretending that isn't her name.

Slowly, she stands and makes her way to the piano at the front of the room. She doesn't look up as she walks, keeping her eyes on the piano alone. When she sits and places her hands on the keys, she can already feel the music wanting to flow, but holds back until Mrs. Collins speaks again.

"You can start when you're ready," she says.

Taking a deep breath, she does.

She had her hands placed for an old cover, but once she starts playing, she hears her audition song start. It's an original, and since then she's developed on it even more, making it bigger and better than she thought it could possibly be. It starts out quiet, but very quickly its volume escalates and fills the room with its melodic sound. If she closes her eyes, she can picture herself back home in Miami, or maybe in her new home just down the street from here.

She slowly brings the song to a finish, and the second she takes her hands away from the keys, the classroom erupts into an applause. She turns around, shocked at the sudden positive reaction. Smiling, she stands and walks back to her desk.

Once the clapping dies down, Mrs. Collins turns to her, an impressed grin on her face.

"Well done, Miss. Dawson, well done," she says. I have a feeling you'll do just fine in this class." She's about to pull the list out again, but stops to say, "Welcome to MUNY, Miss. Dawson. And in case anyone hasn't said it yet, welcome to New York." Then she turns back to her list and calls out the name of the next student to play.

She has a feeling she just entered a whole new world right here in New York City, and she's sure she'll never want to leave it behind.

* * *

 **(1) The Stardust Diner is actually a real place. I heard about it in school from a student who went there, and it sounded really interesting, so I decided to include it in here.**

 **That's the first chapter! If it doesn't interest you now, it gets better in a couple chapters, I promise. I'm using the codes that were in the lyric book for _1989_ as a sort of guideline for the story, so that's where some of the idea for each chapter comes from. But yeah. Thanks for reading! I hope you continue to follow along with this story, and maybe leave a review to tell me what you thought of it? Those are always nice to receive. :)**


	2. Blank Space

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Thanks to everyone who read the first chapter! Here's chapter two. :)  
**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own "Austin & Ally" or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Blank Space:  
" _There once was a girl known by everyone and no one."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

It's been four months since Ally Dawson first moved to New York City to attend MUNY, and what a crazy four months it's been.

It wasn't long before people besides her piano teacher recognized she had an incredible ability. She was one of the top – sometimes even _the_ top – best students in all her classes, and many of her classmates questioned how she came to be such an amazing musician. It was only a month into the school year when she was approached by none other than the dean himself, who invited her to check out the school's recording studio. Next thing she knew, they were offering to record her first song and release it to the public in a few months' time.

But the most shocking reaction she received was from the public. Less than twenty-four hours after her song was released, Cassidy called – because, though they didn't have Advanced Piano Lessons, together, they did end up sharing other classes – and told her to turn on the radio. She did, and she couldn't believe what she heard.

"Is that –?" she started, not wanting to jinx this unbelievable moment.

"Your song!" Cassidy shouted. "It's your song!"

Ally shrieked in delight. She couldn't believe it. Her song, her very first song, on the radio! It was such a surreal moment. Everywhere she went, people would congratulate her on her first single, which very quickly became number one on iTunes and was in the top ten on the Billboard 100 list. People loved it, and loved her, and they couldn't wait for more. So, after a very promising conversation with the owners of the recording studio, she was signed, and set to start working on more music.

Fast forward a month since then, and Ally's life has been hectic. With school out for the month of December, she's been spending all her time either recording in the studio or up late in her apartment writing. Originally, she was supposed to go back home to Miami for Christmas, but plans have changed and her dad is being flown up to stay for a week so she can spend time with him while also working on her music. It's her dream, making music, but right now it's tiring, and all she wants is to spend the holidays with her dad and a few friends.

She arrives home from a long day of recording and immediately flops down onto the couch. They finished this song early, so she was able to head home just in time to make dinner. Just as she's about to close her eyes and sleep for hours, not caring that she's still in her winter coat and lying on the couch, her doorbell rings. Groaning, she stands and walks back to the front door.

"Hello?" she asks when she opens the door, not bothering to hide her exhaustion.

"Oh, sorry to bother you, Ally," a familiar voice says.

She straightens. "Oh, it's not a problem, Dallas," she says, recognizing her neighbour from across the hall.

He chuckles, but doesn't comment. Instead, he says, "Someone stopped by your apartment to drop off something earlier, but since you weren't here, they asked me to deliver it instead. So, I'm delivering it," he says, holding out a thick envelope.

"Oh. Thank you," she replies, taking the envelope from him. "I wonder why they didn't just leave it in my mailbox."

"They said it was too valuable or something," Dallas explains. "Anyway, that's really all I came by for. See you around."

Just as he turns around, however, Ally stops him.

"Wait."

"Yes?" he asks, turning to face her again.

"Don't you want to see what it is? You helped deliver it, after all," she says.

He smiles, then walks back to her door again. "You do have a point."

She smiles back, then proceeds to turn the envelope around and lift the flap, pulling out –

"An invitation?" she says.

"Really? For what?" says Dallas.

She scans the invite, her eyes widening in shock. "Um, only to one of the biggest shows of the year! They're asking me to perform in Times Square on New Year's Eve!" she exclaims, holding out the invite for Dallas to read.

"That's so cool!" Dallas replies, grinning at the invite, then Ally. "You're so lucky!"

"This is just...so amazing, I can hardly believe it," she says, more to herself than Dallas. As she reads the invite again, she notices something she didn't see before. "Apparently, I can bring a guest to the show. Wow."

"Well, whoever you take is one lucky guy – or girl, if you're not with somebody. Unless the person you're with is a girl, then that's cool, too," he adds quickly.

This brings her eyes up to him. "I – No, I'm actually not with anybody, to be honest with you. I haven't really had the time since...ever."

"Really?"

She nods. "Yeah." She pauses before adding, "Did – did you want to come with me? I mean, I'd ask my dad, since he'll be in town, but he hates crowds and it'll be really cold and he's not used to that, so he'll probably just want to stay in for the night, and I know Cassidy already has plans with her boyfriend, so –"

Dallas's laugh brings her to a stop in her rambling.

"Ally, slow down, I can hardly understand a word you just said to me," he says with a laugh. "But, unless I'm mistaken, I think you just asked me out?"

She gapes at him, not sure what he meant. When realization hits her, she says, "Oh! Oh, you mean – New Year's Eve, the show – me asking you to come with...me. On New Year's Eve. Right."

"Did you not mean it as a date? Because I'm fine with just going as friends," he says.

Ally thinks for a minute before replying, "It could be a date. If you wanted it to be."

Now Dallas smiles again, bigger than before. He nods. "Yeah. Yeah, I'd like that."

"Okay," she says. "I guess I'll see you on New Year's Eve."

"It's a date."

She laughs. "Yeah, it is," she says, then turns around and heads back into her apartment. But this time, she doesn't crash on her couch again. She is far too awake to think of sleeping right now. Not just because of the invitation, though that is a huge part of it, but the idea of going on a date again after being single for so many years brings back many memories from when she was in Miami. She'd only ever had one real boyfriend when she was fifteen, and that was only because her and Elliot, a friend from summer camp, were dared to kiss each other at a party. When they both realized they weren't incredibly disgusted with what occurred, he asked her out. It didn't last long, but it was something, and it hit her hard when it ended.

There wasn't really anyone else that interested her during her time in high school, though she does remember her friend Trish telling her one of the guys on the basketball team had taken a liking to her after she and Elliot had broken up. Apparently, he liked watching her play piano sometimes after school, but when her best friend, Trish, had caught him, he stopped. She doesn't remember the name, though – Dustin? Justin? Something like that. Either way, nothing else has happened – until now.

But one thing she'd forgotten during her time in the hallway talking to Dallas was the fact that she was now famous, and things like potential relationships don't go unnoticed by the media. Only a few days after their talk do photos surface of them in the hallway, with people speculating who the 'mystery man' was. She never asked Dallas if he saw the news, and he never mentioned it to her, so she assumed he was okay with it – or, at the very least, expected it. Nevertheless, he still shows up on New Year's Eve to join her in Times Square.

Performing in Times Square is all the more amazing than Ally could've ever imagined. The crowd goes crazy as she sings, and she meets quite a few celebrities that were just as pleased with her song. (She was only able to receive two thumbs up and a smile from Nick Jonas as he was walking towards the stage to perform, but Taylor Swift actually stopped her in the hallway to talk to her. Taylor Swift! Talked to her, Ally Dawson! And said she loves her!) She still can't believe it.

After the show, she meets up with Dallas backstage and together they make their way outside in time for the countdown. It's a little chilly, but with all the people crowded together it's not so bad. The countdown comes sooner than Ally expected, and she shouts "Happy New Year!" along with the rest of the crowd and she grins at Dallas beside her and next thing she knows he has his hand wrapped in her hair as he kisses her and she thinks she's really starting to make it here in New York City.

* * *

 **A couple things. A few people asked me some questions in the reviews, so I'll answer those here. Any questions you guys have, you can just leave it in a review, and I'll put my answer at the end of the next chapter (or you can PM me. Either way is fine).**

 **\- Guest: you asked me if I was going to use any of the bonus songs in this story. Currently, my answer is no. Those last three songs don't have any codes in their lyrics, so I didn't really know how I'd fit them in the story. But I am open to using them for a final chapter/epilogue if enough people want one. (Also, thank you for the review!)**

 **\- axswiftxa13: since you asked about the code from the last song, all I can say is...you'll just have to wait and see what happens. :P (And thanks for the review!)**

 **Thank you to everyone who reviewed or followed/favourited! I really appreciated it.**

 **The second thing I wanted to mention is sort of just to say that, no, there will not be a love triangle in this story. Idk, I feel like some people might think so because of Dallas in this chapter and Cassidy being a part of the main characters, but no. No love triangles here.**

 **I think that's it. Sorry for the longish author's note. Thanks for reading! :)**


	3. Style

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Onto chapter three. Thanks to those who've been following along so far! To everyone who asked when Austin was (finally) going to show up...here's your answer. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Style:  
 _"Her heart belonged to someone who couldn't stay."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

Ally's relationship with Dallas lasted two months.

The problem wasn't that they didn't like each other as much as they originally thought, or that they fought, or he cheated on her, or anything like that. They just didn't have enough time for each other. With Ally in the middle of working on her debut album, she was in the recording studio whenever she wasn't at school. And Dallas had a part-time job on weekends at the tech shop downtown. As often as they tried to schedule time for dates or to just catch up, things kept popping up and they would have to reschedule. But they did their best and stuck with it until finally one day they caught each other in the morning before school and ended it. They knew for now it was better this way, and maybe, if they still felt the same way later, they could try again.

As optimistic as Ally wants to be about Dallas, she's having trouble being optimistic about any chance at a relationship again. It's finally June, and for most people that means the end of the school year. But for Ally, it also means the release of her debut album. After working tirelessly on it for months on end, pulling all-nighters and even missing a couple classes, she finished it, and in just a couple weeks, it'll be out, and life as she knows it might be changed forever.

Now, however, Ally is heading home from a talk with her producers at the studio. She's readjusting her bag on her shoulder as she turns the corner and passes a coffee shop when she remembers she forgot her cell phone at the studio. But just as she turns around to go back, she bumps into someone hard, causing the person to shout in shock and drop their coffee cup on the ground.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Ally exclaims to the stranger. "I wasn't watching where I was going, I didn't mean to make you drop your coffee! Here, why don't I –"

The stranger laughs, causing her to finally look up at them. He's quite tall, with messy blonde hair and brown eyes and a wide grin that catches her by surprise, especially considering she just made him drop his coffee.

"It's alright," he says, bending down to pick up the now useless cup and tossing it in a nearby garbage can. "It's just coffee, it happens."

"Oh," Ally mutters. "Still, it wouldn't hurt for me to buy you a new one."

"You don't have to. I can get one later. If anything, you did me a favour. I've been drinking coffee by the gallon these days, and I just can't seem to bring myself to cut back," he replies.

Ally laughs. "Still."

The stranger shakes his head. "It's really nothing." Then he holds out his hand. "I'm Austin, by the way. Austin Moon."

Ally slowly takes Austin's hand and shakes it. "I'm Ally. Ally Dawson."

Suddenly, a flash of recognition shows in Austin's eyes.

"I thought you looked familiar," he says. "I heard your song on the radio a while ago and couldn't get it out of my head. You're really talented."

Ally smiles. "Thank you. I still can't believe how many people enjoyed it."

"Oh, but it's incredible!" he says. "Are you putting out anything new sometime soon?"

Ally nods. "Yeah, my album actually comes out in two weeks. I'm really excited for it."

Austin smiles. "I'll make sure to check it out," he replies. "Well, it was really nice to meet you, Ally."

"You, too," she says, then starts to walk around him. Just as she gets to the corner, however, she hears someone run up to her and looks to see Austin walking beside her.

"Did you forget something?" she asks with a laugh.

He chuckles. "Not exactly," he says. "I just remembered I was supposed to be heading this way and thought I'd walk with you."

"Ohh, that's it," she replies. "You sure you just didn't want to walk with me to wherever it is _I'm_ going?"

"That – that might be a small part of it, too," he says.

She laughs, but doesn't push him away. This Austin guy seems really interesting, and for the first time since Dallas, she wouldn't mind getting to know him a little more.

And she definitely does. They talk all the way to the studio and back to the coffee shop, where they manage to find a vacant seat at the back (she also manages to buy him that coffee) and talk for a while. She learns that he's also from Miami – they apparently went to the same high school but never ran into each other – his parents own the mattress store in town, and he's staying in New York for the summer to attend a music program a few blocks down the street. Then he brings up his days when he thought he might be an incredible basketball player and something clicks.

"Wait a minute. Were you on the school basketball team?" she interrupts.

Austin nods. "Yeah, for two years. Why?"

She opens her mouth to respond, but quickly shuts. Could it really be him?

"Ally?"

She shakes her head. "Nothing, it's just – one of my friends told me a guy on the basketball team watched me play piano after school and...well, the name I remember kinda rhymes with yours," she admits.

"Oh," Austin says after a moment, then looks down at his empty coffee mug in his hand. "Right."

"Right? Right what?"

He laughs before looking up. "I'm just surprised you actually remembered that, is all."

"So it _was_ you, then?" she asks.

"Depends. Would you think I'm weird if it was?" he asks.

She shakes her head. "No," she replies. "I'd think that was kinda cute, actually. But you could've said something if you wanted to. I don't bite."

Austin laughs again. "I know. I just didn't want to interrupt something so incredible. The music you made then sounded so amazing, and it reminded me of how much I loved playing. I had to keep quiet about it, though, because my parents never believed it would go anywhere." He pauses. "But hearing you play, I thought it wasn't such a long shot. So I gave up basketball at the end of the year and spent the rest of high school trying to make it somewhere with music. My parents weren't too thrilled, but when they realized I wasn't going to give up again, they let it go."

Ally's at a loss for words after this. The part where he said she basically gave him the hope to start playing again keeps ringing in her ears, and she's having trouble believing they never ran into each other once all through high school. She wonders what their lives might've been like if they had.

Finally, she drops her gaze and clears her throat.

"So, where do you go to school, then?" she asks.

"Nowhere yet," he admits. "I took the year off to work so I could make enough money for college. The music program is my chance to try and get into one of the bigger music schools."

"Like where?"

He pauses. "Juilliard," he admits. "If I do well enough at this program, I could get a scholarship to Juilliard. But that's crazy talk, right? Only insanely talented people get into Juilliard," he adds.

But Ally shakes her head. "That's not crazy at all," she says. "I think that's an incredible idea, actually. I also think you'll get in."

He looks up in shock. "You've never even heard me play."

She shrugs. "I know," she says. "But your passion for music doesn't seem like it'd belong to someone who can't even play. I'm sure you're a great musician."

Austin smiles. "Thanks, Ally," he says. "That means a lot."

Ally smiles back. "You're welcome."

Silence falls between them, and she takes this time to look around the coffee shop for a moment. She takes notice of how vacant the place seems, and how dark it looks outside the front doors. Her eyes land on the clock, and she jumps.

Austin's gaze follows hers to clock, wondering what caused her to jump. Reading the time, he says, "Whoa, is it really that late?"

Ally nods. "I should really be getting home, like, now," she says.

"Me, too," Austin replies, and together they walk quickly out of the coffee shop and down the street. Once they reach the corner, they slow down.

"My, uh, my dorm is down this street, so..." Austin says slowly.

"Oh," Ally replies. "Okay. I guess I'll see you later, then?"

Austin nods. "I guess." He only takes a couple steps away when he quickly turns around again and says, "I kind of need your number if we plan on hanging out again."

"Oh. Oh, right!" Ally says. "Right." She pulls her phone out of her pocket and trades it for his, both of them typing their numbers in, then trading back.

" _Now_ I'll see you later," Austin says.

Ally smiles. "I hope so," she replies, but it's too quiet and he's too far away to hear this, so she continues her walk down the street back to her own apartment. Maybe this one will be different. Maybe this one will be better. Maybe this one will never go out of style.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading! If you have any questions, feel free to PM me or leave it in a review. Or just review, cause that's cool, too.**


	4. Out of the Woods

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Sorry about the late update. I was in Toronto the past couple days, and for some reason kind of completely forgot about uploading this today until, well, now, so...yeah. Here's chapter four! Hope you guys like it. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Out of the Woods:  
 _"They loved each other recklessly."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

Austin officially asks her out the next time they see each other.

They meet up at the coffee shop again, but instead of staying there they decide to explore the city a bit, Ally acting as a sort of tour guide for Austin. They weren't even out for an hour when he asked the question.

"You wanna go out with me this Friday?"

Ally stops in her tracks, not sure she heard him right.

"What?" she asks with a laugh.

"Do you wanna go out with me? Friday night?" he repeats.

"Like – like on a date?"

He nods, laughing. "Well, yeah, that was kinda my intention."

"Oh," she mumbles, looking down. She kicks at a loose pebble on the sidewalk, unsure of how to respond. They've only spoken to each other for a few hours total, but even in those hours she knows she feels something different for him. But at the same time, does she want to risk what could be a great friendship for a relationship that has the possibility to fail just like the last one? Not to mention, with her album coming out in a week, the public will be paying close attention to her for a while.

She sighs. "Are you sure you want to?" she asks.

"Positive," he says immediately.

"Even with all the publicity?"

"Even then."

She smiles. This one feels different. Maybe this one will be easier, too.

She nods. "I would love to go out with you on Friday, Austin."

* * *

Their first date isn't quite as grand as Times Square on New Years Eve, but it's still amazing. When he picks her up at six to take her out to dinner, she's surprised when he stops by the Stardust Diner.

Pointing to the building, Ally says, "You know this place?"

Austin nods. "Yeah, I came here on my first night in New York. It's incredible." He looks at her. "Why? Have you been here before?"

"It's only like my favourite restaurant of all time," she replies.

He chuckles. "Well, I'm glad to know one thing will be fine tonight."

She laughs, and they walk inside together. He pulls her chair out for her, something she wasn't expecting, giving this date an even better start. After they order, the conversation begins, and it doesn't stop even once their food arrives, half the time neglecting it completely to pay attention to what the other is saying. It starts with music – the songs being sung around them, as well as their own favourites – but it quickly changes, and then they're going from school and interests to family and stories from their childhood. Once they finally finish their food, they head out again. Austin leads them to Central Park.

Outside, the bright sky is slowly fading as the sun sets. Summer is coming, but with it being the beginning of May, it's a little windy out. As they quietly walk through the park, Ally feels something lightly bump the back of her hand, and then Austin is grasping it with his, intertwining their fingers together. She smiles to herself at this.

As they walk past a pond, he speaks up.

"Do you remember me well? From school?" he asks.

She looks up at him, then shrugs. "A little."

"Really?"

She nods. "Yeah," she replies. "I didn't at first, but after finding out you were on the basketball team, some things came back to me. I don't think we had any classes together, but I did see you in the hallways quite a few times. You had a lot of friends."

He just shrugs. "I guess so. I don't talk to many of them now. Just Dez."

"Dez?"

"Tall, red-headed? He always wore those bright and colourful clothes?" he explains.

She thinks for a second. "I might've seen him a couple times, yeah."

"Yeah, he stands out," he replies, and she laughs.

"I wonder why."

He chuckles. After a moment, he says, "I remember you. From school."

"Really."

"Mm-hm," he says with a nod. "I think we discussed the whole 'observing you while you played music' thing before?"

She laughs. "I think I remember that coming up."

He laughs with her. "Yeah. I saw you around, too. We never did share any classes, no, but I saw you a lot. Our lockers were usually close. And you sometimes performed at school assemblies. It's no surprise you got so famous."

She smiles. "Thanks," she says.

"It's just the truth," he replies. "I never got the chance to talk to you in school. But I'm glad I ran into you here, in New York. I really like you."

"But we've only known each other for a week," she says.

"And we've only actually talked for about three days of that week. But that doesn't change anything."

Her smile grows, and she looks down as they continue walking. He slows down to a stop when they reach a tall lamppost in the middle of the park, and stands in front of her.

"So," he starts, "I know this is only our first date and we're not exactly at the gift-giving stage yet, but I was walking past this jewelry store a few days ago and I saw this in the window and it reminded me of you, so I just had to buy it." He pulls a small box out of his pocket, slowly handing it to Ally.

She takes it carefully, then lifts the lid. She gasps, for inside lies a small silver music note hanging on a thin chain. She pulls it out of the box to admire it up close.

"Austin," she says, "you really didn't have to do this for me. I... Wow." She meets his gaze. "Thank you."

He shrugs. "It was nothing," he says. "Here, why don't I help you put it on?"

She opens her mouth to protest, but lets him take the necklace out of her hand and open the clasp, then slowly wraps it around her neck and clips it together. She watches quietly as his hands slowly trail along the chain of the necklace, coming to a stop on the music note.

"There. Perfect," he says quietly.

She smiles, then looks up, meeting his gaze. He smiles back, but it fades quickly, and his eyes flicker to her lips before he begins to lean down, his hand going under her chin as he tilts her head up. Her eyes flutter to a close and then his lips meet hers and it's slow and gentle and she feels like a teen being kissed for the first time as she places her hands on his waist. He smiles into the kiss, and she laughs a little. But then he's pulling back and her eyes open and all she can do is beam at him and think about how she might finally be out of the woods and in the clear to start a new and better relationship with Austin Moon.

* * *

Problems arise after her album is released and she's doing signings and interviews nearly every day and his music program is getting tougher. Only after four weeks of being together, they have their first fight in her kitchen about making time for each other.

"How busy are you next Thursday night?" Austin asks her from the couch, flipping through channels on the TV. He would've asked about the four days before that, but she has as interview on Sunday and Monday, and from Monday to Wednesday he's packed with work for his program.

In the kitchen, Ally is looking in her fridge for something to drink. She says, "I think I'm doing a performance that night."

"Okay. Friday?" he asks.

"Another interview."

"What about Saturday? I won't have any classes."

Finding nothing, she stands and walks over to her coffee pot in the corner and plugs it in. Adding some water to it, she shakes her head. "No. I have a meeting in the morning, and then I'm doing an interview and a performance that evening."

"What about in between that? In the afternoon?"

"I don't think I'll have any time in between that."

"Oh." He falls silent again, and she thinks the conversation might be over until he says, "So, we don't have any time to go out at all next week?"

She just shrugs. "I know," she says. "It's okay, though. We can just go out the week after." She turns around to grab her mug from the cupboard.

"Why are you so okay with this?" he asks, and his sudden change in tone makes her turn around again to look at him.

"I don't understand," she says slowly.

He stands from the couch and walks into the kitchen, stopping in front of her.

"I mean, why are you fine with us having no time to spend together next week? Why aren't you trying harder to make room?" He pauses. "Why aren't either of us trying hard enough?"

She gapes at him. "Excuse me, I'll have you know I am trying! I can't help it that I'm swamped with meetings and interviews all day no more than you can help this program! We're both busy right now! We won't be busy forever."

"And what if we are? What if you go on tour after this? What if I'm accepted to Juilliard and I'm _still_ busy with school? We can't put this off, Ally! We have to make time for each other if we want this to work! I know I do. Do you?"

"I – Of course I do!" she shouts. "I'm just –"

"– busy. I know."

She glares at him, but something in his eyes causes her to drop this look. He's angry, yes, but he's frustrated and worried, too. He cares about her more than she expected him to, and in that moment she realizes just how much she feels the same way.

She sighs. "I'm sorry, Austin," she says. "I don't mean to make you think I don't care. It's just that..." She pauses to take a deep breath, "my last relationship was a lot like this. We were too busy to hang out, and after two months, we ended it."

"You didn't think _all_ relationships were like that, did you?"

She shrugs. "I don't know. I guess I thought mine would be, with my sudden fame and all." She pauses. "I just wanna make this work," she adds quietly.

Austin sighs. "Me, too," he replies. "Look, I'm sorry for getting so mad at you, Ally. I wasn't trying to say that you didn't care about us. I was just...scared, I guess. I don't wanna lose you. And...I love you."

Very quickly, she looks up. "What?"

Louder, he repeats, "I love you." Realizing how much this might mean to her, he adds, "I mean, I know we've only been together for barely a month and we haven't seen each other a lot, but I know you and I know this, and –"

"I love you, too," she interrupts, and she surprises even herself when she realizes just how much she means this.

"– felt it was – what?"

She smiles. "I love you, too."

"Really?"

She doesn't hesitate in nodding a reply, and he quickly leans down and kisses her with a passion she's never received before and she kisses him back with the same intensity. Her back is pushing into the counter behind her, but then he wraps his arms around her waist to pick her up and sit her on it. She wraps her legs tight around his own waist, and his hands are trailing down her back and hers are tangled in his hair and she parts her mouth a little to deepen the kiss. His hands reach the hem of her shirt, and she doesn't stop him as he slowly pulls it up and over her head, tossing it onto the floor behind him. Just as he goes to resume kissing her again, she stops him.

"Maybe," she starts, out of breath, "maybe we should take this somewhere else."

He just nods in agreement, and then his mouth is on hers again and they manage to stumble their way into her bedroom and fall into her bed together. They don't say anything else to each other for the rest of the night, but they don't need to.

Things get easier after that. She visits him at his music program on weeknights when he's not busy and she has no meetings and is introduced to his roommate – the odd redhead named Dez Wade that he mentioned once before, who's trying to get a scholarship for film school – and he comes with her to her interviews and meetings at the studio on the weekends he's free. They find a way to make it work, and she thinks this is the happiest she's been in a while.

* * *

In the middle of July she's getting ready for bed when Austin walks out of the bathroom and up to her with a concerned expression on his face.

"What is it?" she asks, moving pillows and pulling back the covers.

"What happened at your meeting today?" he asks.

She stops in her actions, quiet. Then she shakes her head and stands straight. "What do you mean?"

He takes a step closer to her. "The meeting at the studio. When you called afterwards, you sounded upset about something." He pauses. "They didn't drop you, did they?"

Her eyes widen in shock. "No, no! They didn't drop me, Austin!" she exclaims. "I'm still signed, don't worry."

"Then why were you so upset?"

"I wasn't upset," she denies.

"You sounded like you were crying."

"I..." She trails off, sitting down on the edge of her bed. He sits next to her and places a hand over hers.

"What is it, Ally?" he asks quietly.

She sighs. "I wasn't upset. I was...I was nervous."

"Nervous? About what?"

"About us." She pauses. "I was nervous about us because they, uh...the producers were talking about finalizing tour dates." She looks up to meet Austin's gaze. "They want me to go on tour in the fall and I don't know how to tell them I don't want to because I don't want to lose you, Austin, and I know that might sound dumb, I mean, we've only been together for like two months and that's probably nothing to them, but it's about as long as most of my relationships have lasted and I love you and I can't – I just can't lose you, not yet, not now, not when things have been so good between us. I'm just – I'm so sorry I had to drag you into this mess, I'm so –"

She's cut off by her own choke on a sob and he puts his arm around her and hugs her close while she cries into his chest. She can hear him telling her they'll be okay and they'll figure it out, but it's muffled and she's afraid that they won't be able to sustain the separation while she's touring the country and he's in Juilliard and one of them will crack and she'll be lost again. She's fallen hard for him in these two months and she knows she'll fall harder in the next two. She thinks maybe fame isn't so worth it after all if you can't be with the person you love while doing what you love.

Her crying slows down and he pulls her up, his hands on her face as he wipes away the rest of her tears. She almost wants to start crying again just so he'll never let her go, but she holds it together.

"Hey, look at me, Ally," he says quietly. "We're gonna be okay. Alright? We're gonna be okay. We'll figure it out. I knew getting into this relationship that things might be different, that you might have to leave for months at a time, but I did it, anyway. And I'm still here. Why? Because I love you. I'm so crazy in love with you, Ally, and I'm not gonna let something like a national tour get between us. Okay? We're gonna make it. I know we will."

She sniffles, but manages a smile.

"You gonna be okay?" he asks.

She nods.

He smiles. "Okay," he whispers, leaning up and planting a kiss on her forehead. "I love you. Don't you ever forget that."

"I know," she says. "I love you, too. And Austin?"

"Yeah?"

She pauses. "Thank you."

He smiles. "Anything for you, Ally."

Once again, he's filled her with the hope that nothing could go wrong between them, and they fall asleep quickly that night, both with a smile on their face.

* * *

The rest of July passes by quickly with minimal issues, and then it's August and Austin has his final exam at his music program during the first week, so the time they spend together is filled with studying. After the exam, the waiting comes.

A week later he shows up at her apartment with a letter in his hand, and immediately she knows what it is.

"Did you get in?" she asks excitedly.

He steps past her and straight to her living room, where he begins pacing.

Slowly shutting the door, she says, "Or you haven't opened it yet."

She walks up to him and he stops pacing in front of her.

"What if I didn't get in? I mean, I know I answered one question wrong, I checked after, but it's just one question, right? But what if it wasn't the only one? And then there was the presentation the next day and I'm sure I messed up a couple chords, I know they noticed something, I could tell when I left the room." He groans and sits on the couch. "What if I didn't get in, Ally? What do I do then?"

She sits down next to him. "If you didn't get in, I'm sure we'll be able to figure something out. But you won't be able to do anything until you open that letter."

He nods, then stares at the letter in his hand. After a second, he hands it to her. "You open it," he says.

She slowly takes it from him. "You sure you want to do that?"

He just nods again, then looks away.

Envelope in hand, she turns it over and pries it open, pulling out the letter. She reads it over once, then twice, then skims it a third time to make sure she read it correctly, leaving her face expressionless. After a minute, Austin speaks again.

"Well?" he asks.

She smiles, then turns the letter around for him to read and shouts, "You got in!"

" _What_?" Austin exclaims, grabbing the letter and standing up. He reads it for himself before saying, "I got in?"

Ally stands with him. "You got in! You're going to Juilliard!"

"I'm going to Juilliard?" He glances at the letter again, and finally a grin appears. "I'm going to Juilliard!" Then he wraps his arms around Ally in a tight hug.

"I'm so proud of you!" she says. "You did it! You really did it!"

Austin pulls back from the hug to stare at the letter again. "I can't believe this. I'm going to Juilliard. I'm _actually_ going to Juilliard. And on a full scholarship, too! I can't believe this."

Ally laughs. "I know, it's a crazy feeling, huh? I couldn't believe it when I got into MUNY, much less managed to make it to where I am today."

Now Austin looks up from the letter. "I highly doubt that. You're too talented to have not gotten into MUNY. And I bet if I can get into Juilliard, you could, too." He pauses. "Why _didn't_ you decide to go to Juilliard, anyway?"

Ally shrugs. "It wasn't what I was looking for. They're all about performing. MUNY is for me to study music," she explains. "But enough about me. This is your moment right now. We should celebrate – I'll pay."

Austin chuckles. "Alright. Stardust Diner?"

"Whatever you want," she replies. Grabbing her purse, Ally follows Austin out into the hallway and to the elevator, ready to embark on this new chapter in _his_ musical journey now, and she can't wait to see where it brings them.

* * *

 **A guest reviewer asked me if this story was going to have an update schedule, to which I would say yes. I plan to update this story about every five days. I don't want to be the type to leave you guys hanging for a month or two, but I also don't want to update everyday, because then this story would begin and end in like two weeks. But yeah, about every five days I'll upload a new chapter.**

 **Thanks for reading! I keep mentioning it, but leave any questions you have in the reviews or PM me, because I will answer them. You can also jut leave a review telling me what you think so far. Those always make me happy. But anyways. :)**


	5. All You Had To Do Was Stay

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off 1989 by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Thanks to everyone who's been following, favouriting, and reviewing this story so far! I really appreciate it. Here's chapter five. Hope you guys like it? Or not. I don't know. We'll see.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally, 1989 by Taylor Swift, or "Steal Your Heart" by Ross Lynch.**

* * *

All You Had To Do Was Stay:  
 _"They paid the price."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

A few weeks into September, things begin to change. The first major change happens to Austin.

"They're _what_?" Ally asks him over the phone.

"They're asking me if I want to record a single!" he says. "One of the professors heard me singing in the cafeteria the other day and when he told a few others they started talking about the potential I had – or something like that – and the next thing I knew I was being introduced to some producers and asked if I wanted to record something with them."

Ally, currently sitting at the piano in her living room taking a break from rehearsing, stands and walks into her kitchen to grab a water bottle from the fridge.

"Wow," she finally says, placing the bottle on the counter. "That's amazing."

"I know!" Austin exclaims. "It's just like what happened to you, Ally. They saw the potential in you, and next thing you know, you're famous and about to go on tour. It's incredible."

She nods. "It is," she agrees. She glances at the time, then continues, "Listen, I gotta go, I have a, uh, band rehearsal in thirty minutes and I can't be late. But I'll see you later, right?"

"Of course," he replies. "Love you."

She hears the click of him ending the call, but still mutters, "Love you, too." She pulls the phone away from her ear and places it on the counter next to the water bottle, still unopened.

She's happy for Austin, she really is. He deserves it. God knows how long that boy has been waiting for a chance like this, and with a voice like his, she knows he'll go far. What worries her isn't this sudden opportunity – it's about time someone discovered him – but what it could mean for them as a couple. The public already knows about their relationship, even when she hasn't said a word about it to anyone other than friends and family. What would they say when they found out he could sing, too? Would the media give them a break? Or would things get worse?

But the media isn't what worries her the most. She honestly doesn't pay attention to half the stuff they say about her anymore. What worries her is just how far this will take him, and if their relationship will be able to sustain it. She just knows he's going to go somewhere; she knows it won't be long until he's asked to record his own album, and then he'll be busy practically twenty-four/seven in the studio and she'll probably be in the middle of her tour so they'll be too busy or too tired to talk for more than five minutes at a time. She's happy for him, she really is. She loves him enough to want what's best for him, but she's afraid she's become too attached to him to be able to let him go if need be. Because if she lets him go, he might not come back.

He comes home late that night due to discussing song ideas at the studio and she's able to put on a smile for him and listen to him rave on about what this could mean for him in the future, and their future. He's not at all worried about how this could negatively affect their relationship, and it fills her with hope to know how sure he is of them. She only wishes she could believe it as much as he does. But she says nothing, because he's happy and that's all that matters right now.

* * *

October comes quickly, and for Ally it means the beginning of her first tour. As excited as she is about being able to perform for fans, she feels sad about having to leave Austin when his own musical journey just started.

"Don't worry about me," he tells her the morning she's to leave. They're standing outside her bus in the cooling air of New York, but when she shivers it's not because of the cold.

Austin places his hand on the back of her neck and leans down, kissing her slowly. She would've stood here with him like this forever if the bus driver didn't honk the horn for the second time today, letting her know they had to leave.

"I love you," she says quietly.

He smiles. "I love you, too. Now go have fun on your tour," he replies.

She smiles back. "I'll try," she says, then leans up and kisses him once more before finally walking onto the bus that will take her to her first stop on tour. She waves to him from the window until she can no longer see him, then sits down, quiet. Barely five minutes pass when she receives a text. Pulling her phone out of her pocket, she reads:

From: Austin  
Sent: 9:17AM  
To: Ally

 _I miss you already. ;P_

She laughs to herself, then quickly types out a reply.

From: Ally  
Sent: 9:18AM  
To: Austin

 _Are we really gonna be_ that _couple? (I miss you already, too.)_

From: Austin  
Sent: 9:19AM  
To: Ally

 _We've always been_ that _couple, and you know it._

From: Ally  
Sent: 9:20AM  
To: Austin

 _Touche. :P_

He only replies with his own ' _:P_ ,' and then she pockets her phone again, a smile on her face.

Maybe this tour won't be so bad, after all.

* * *

The first couple weeks of tour go by slowly, caused by both how much she misses seeing Austin every day and just how crazy touring can be. She's never late to any of her shows, but they're rushing around a lot to get things done, whether it be setting up instruments for soundcheck or making sure there's enough seats in front of the stage for the Q&A. She does her best to help out whenever she can, but it can be tiring, and according to her bandmates, the singer mustn't be too worn out before the show, so she ends up watching from backstage, either resting or writing.

On the third week of her tour, she's sitting in her dressing room writing when she hears it playing from the radio.

"Next we have newcomer Austin Moon's single, 'Steal Your Heart,'" the radio host says.

Immediately, Ally sits up in shock at hearing the name that was so familiar to her. She knew he was done the song – he told her so a week ago – but she didn't expect it to be on the radio so quickly. But she can't deny it's her boyfriend's voice singing through the radio as she listens.

 _Hey now, baby  
No doubt about it, girl  
You drive me crazy  
I'm pleading guilty to the way you make me  
Wanna steal your heart  
Steal your heart_

As the song plays, she remembers a phone call she received what feels like forever ago about her own song on the radio. Knowing Austin probably isn't listening to the same radio station right this second, she calls him.

"Hey, Ally," he says.

"Turn on 103.7 right now!" she replies.

"Well, hello to you, too," he says instead.

She shakes her head. "I'm serious, Austin."

"Alright, alright, I'm turning on the radio." She hears him get up and make his way to where the radio is placed on the kitchen counter, then click it on and fool around with the station until his voice is playing crystal clear through the speakers, in sync with the song playing in her dressing room.

"Wait. Is that –?" he starts.

She nods even though he can't see him. "It's your song!" she exclaims.

He laughs in excitement, then turns up the volume. "Oh, my God!" he says. "My song's on the radio! Can you believe this?"

Ally laughs. "I can't say I expected it after only being out for a week, but it was bound to happen at some point. It really is an awesome song."

"You're just saying that because it's about you," he says jokingly.

"I – Well, I mean, it's part of it, yeah," she mumbles. She adds, "But besides that. It's incredible. I'm so happy for you, Austin."

He's quiet for a minute, enjoying the moment as his song comes to an end. Then he says, "I just can't believe it. It's so surreal."

"Yeah, it really is."

"Thank you for calling to tell me. I'd never have known otherwise, I hardly ever listen to the radio," he says.

Ally just shrugs. "You're just lucky I left the station on. As much as I like most of the songs in the Top 40, I don't like hearing the same ten every hour," she replies. "But you're welcome. I couldn't enjoy this exciting moment in your career without you."

"I feel the same way." He pauses. "I should probably let you go, huh? You must have to go on stage soon."

"No, I think I have a few minutes left," she says, but just as she does, one of her backup singers peeks their head inside the door.

"We're starting in ten minutes, Ally, so be ready," she says, then closes the door behind her.

"Are you sure about that?" Austin asks.

Ally shakes her head. "Sorry. I wish we had more time to talk."

"Me, too. But I'm happy for you getting to do what you love. Maybe I can join you on your next tour as your opening act or something. I don't even have to do that, I could just come for the fun of it," Austin replies.

Ally laughs. "If you came on tour with me, you wouldn't be the opening act, you'd be part of the main act. We could be known as Austin & Ally, but with an ampersand instead of the word 'and' to make us seem more official."

"I like it. We can get started on it right after your tour finishes. Which is in... How many days are left?"

"Uh, seventy-four. Not that I've been counting," she adds quietly.

Austin just laughs, but it dies down very quickly. "That's a long time."

Ally nods. "It is, yeah."

They're both quiet for another minute before Austin finally says, "I guess I'll let you get ready for your show now. Have fun tonight. I love you."

Ally smiles, but it's half-hearted. "Okay. I'll try. I love you, too." Then she hangs up.

Maybe this tour is going to be longer than she thought.

* * *

After about a month has passed of her on the road, things start to get better. Ally becomes used to the tight schedule of her tour and Austin has fallen into a steady system at Juilliard, so they manage to make more time to talk late at night or on the days when she has no show. But even on the days where they can't talk, she enjoys herself. Touring isn't as bad as she originally feared, not when she's meeting so many amazing people that love her music and later performing for them all at night. It's an unbelievable feeling everyday, being able to do what she loves. She never expected she'd make it this far. It's bittersweet when the tour finally wraps up in December, just in time for the holidays. She'll miss the friends she's made, but she can't wait to see her other friends and family back home, and she definitely can't wait to be with Austin again.

He's waiting for her in the same spot they departed three months ago, and she sprints into his open arms the second she sees him. They hug each other tightly, and when she finally pulls back, he leans down and captures her lips in a hard kiss, holding her close. When they finally break apart, she laughs.

"Miss me, did you?" she asks with a smile.

He chuckles. "Just a little bit."

She laughs again. "I missed you, too," she replies, leaning up for another kiss. Arms already wrapped around his neck, she pulls him closer, deepening the kiss. He smiles into it, and she swear she would get lost in him forever if it wasn't for their current surroundings – which she is quickly reminded of by one of her guitarists.

"Hey, lovebirds!" he shouts. "Are you gonna get a room or are you gonna help unpack?"

They pull apart slowly, laughing awkwardly.

"You think we should help?" Austin asks.

Ally pretends to think about this for a moment. "Yeah, why not," she says, then walks with him back onto the bus to collect her things.

* * *

Ally begins to notice a change in Austin a week after she's back.

It seemed small at first, but after a few days, she knew something was up. Every time they would talk, he had less to say than usual. And sometimes she would catch a flash of a worried expression, but when he caught her looking, he would quickly replace it with a smile that was all-too forced for her liking. Something was going on with him, and she was starting to worry about it.

She finally brought it up at dinner one night when he was only giving her one-word responses to her questions.

"Alright, what is going on, Austin?" she asks.

He looks up from his plate of spaghetti and meatballs, his fork halfway to his mouth. "What?"

"You've been really quiet all week. You always look nervous whenever you think I'm not looking. Why? Did I do something?"

"What? No!" he says, putting his fork down. "No, Ally, trust me, you didn't do anything, I swear."

"Then what is it? Why are you so quiet?" She pauses. "Please, Austin. Talk to me."

He sighs. "Okay," he says. "I just...I don't know how well you're gonna take it."

"How bad could it be?"

He gives her a worried look, but makes no comment.

"I received a visit at Juilliard a few weeks ago," he starts. "I was in class when I got called to the main office, and saw that the producers I worked with on my single were there, along with a tall man I didn't recognize. When I walked in, the man introduced himself as Jimmy Starr."

Ally gasps. "You mean, from Starr Records?"

Austin nods. "The very same," he confirms. "He said he'd heard my single on the radio and wanted to meet with me. He wanted to know if I was planning on releasing anything else and when. When I told him I wasn't, he, um...he offered to release it himself. He offered me a record deal, Ally. A record deal with Starr Records."

"Wow," Ally says. "That's – I mean, that's amazing, Austin! But I don't understand."

"You don't understand what?" Austin asks.

"Why were you so worried to tell me about this? I'm happy for you. You deserve this."

He attempts a smile, but it doesn't last long. "Thank you," he says. "But that's not it. I wasn't worried about the record deal myself until..." He pauses, "until he asked me to come back with him to his recording studio. In LA."

"I... Oh," Ally mutters. "Wow."

"Yeah."

"LA?"

"Yeah."

She pauses. "Did...did he say when?"

"When what?"

"Did he say when you had to be there?"

"Oh," Austin says. "Not exactly, no. I told him I had to think about it, since practically my whole life is in New York and I can't just up and leave to LA in a day. Especially not with the holidays so close."

"Right," Ally replies.

"He understood that," he continues. "He said he wasn't going to just give up on someone as 'talented as me' – his words, not mine – so he'd give me time. But I think he still wants to know soon. Like, really soon."

Ally nods. "Right. That makes sense."

"Yeah."

After a moment of silence, Ally speaks again. "So, what do you plan on telling him?"

"Jimmy Starr?"

"Yeah."

He sighs. "I don't know, Ally. I mean, on the one hand, performing is what I've wanted to do ever since I was a kid. It's my dream. But on the other hand, I love New York. I'm finally in the perfect school, and I have you. The only thing that would make life so much better is this record deal, but only if it were here, too."

Ally thinks for a minute. "Why can't you sign with the school's recording company? They produced your single. Why not the rest?"

"Because Juilliard's recording company is just Juilliard. I was only asked to record because I stood out, but that doesn't mean there aren't other students that are just as talented. If they signed me, they might as well sign everybody," he explains. "Your school is different, though, right? Aren't they connected to a bigger recording company?"

"Yeah, Ronnie Ramone," Ally replies. "He heard me in the studio before my song was out. Apparently he wanted to sign me on the spot, but decided to wait to see how that first song would do. And when it became popular, he signed me."

"Exactly," Austin says. "It's different." He pauses. "I want this so badly, but I don't know if I'm willing to give up everything I love to move to LA."

"I understand," Ally says. "All of it. Why you were worried to tell me, why you're worried now. It's a big decision. But if you want to go, I...I won't stop you."

Austin shakes his head. "I figured you'd say that. But I don't think you realize just how much I wish you didn't."

Confused, she asks, "Why?"

"Because if you had said no, stay, then I'd have even more reason to not go. But you know how much this means to me, so you support my decision no matter what. I love you for that, but that still leaves one more thing."

"What's that?"

"Juilliard," he answers. "I know it's just school, but it's _Juilliard_. I spent my entire summer in a music program just for a scholarship, and I got it. I got in to one of the biggest music schools in the country, Ally. How am I supposed to just give that up?"

"No one's asking you to," she replies.

"Jimmy Starr is asking me to give it up!" he practically shouts. "Jimmy Starr is asking me to pack up my life and take it all the way across the country to a state I've only heard of to record an album that may or may not be a success. There's so much to lose if this goes wrong, Ally, and I can't afford for that to happen."

"But there's so much to gain if it goes _right_ ," she counters. "Think about it, Austin. This is everything you could ever want and more. I–I understand being bothered by the whole LA part of it – I can't say I like it too much myself – but if this is what you really want, trust me when I say you have nothing to lose. You're incredibly talented, Austin. There's no way you won't be successful this way."

Austin smiles again, and this time it stays. "Thanks, Ally. That really means a lot."

"You're welcome," she replies. "Now stop worrying. Everything will be alright."

She's happy when his smile doesn't go away again that night and attempts to have a real conversation with her. But later when they're lying in bed, she can't sleep. Because as much as she wants what's best for him, she can't stop hearing her own words ringing in her ears, and how much she hates that they all sound like lies to her.

* * *

Austin calls Jimmy Starr the day after New Years to tell him he's taking the deal, but won't fly to LA until after his first semester is over at the end of the month. Now that he's agreed to take the deal, he's happier than he's ever been before. But now this means figuring out how his and Ally's relationship is going to work while he's recording in LA. Touring was one thing, but this is long distance for an indefinite amount of time, and Ally's not sure how much faith she has in them.

Neither of them show any signs of worry or depression as the month goes by, what with Austin getting ready for finals and moving, and Ally preparing herself to begin school again in February along with Austin's departure. They spend as much time as they can with each other, but it feels different, like they're afraid they're treading on thin ice whenever the topic of school or LA is brought up at the dinner table. They're avoiding the things that means everything to them, and she's getting tired of it. She wants them to be real again, and she's afraid the only way to get back to that is to be honest.

The night before he's to leave for LA, Ally changes everything.

She's watching quietly as Austin sets the last of his bags in the living room for tomorrow's trip, and she lets the word slip out before she has a chance to think it through.

"Stay."

He stands straight and looks at her with an expression that she knows means he's hoping he didn't hear what he thinks he did.

"What?" he asks quietly.

She could take this back, she really could. But she's in too deep and she's too selfish to let him go anymore. She's in love with him, and she wants to him to stay with her.

"Stay," she repeats. "Stay with me. Stay in New York. Stay here. Just...don't go."

"Ally..."

"I know, I'm sorry, I shouldn't be saying this now, not when you're supposed to be leaving tomorrow, but I can't..." She stops to hold back a sob, "I can't do it anymore, I can't let you go. I love you, Austin. I want you to stay."

Austin walks towards her with concern, and she realizes she failed to hold back her tears as she feels them slide down her face quickly. He places his hands gently on the sides of her face and wipes them away, but they keep coming and eventually he just pulls her to him and holds her tightly as she cries into his chest. She does her best to stop herself from crying, wanting to defend herself with words and not tears. Once she manages to, she leans back.

"You okay?" Austin asks, his hands back on her face as he wipes away the last of her tears.

She nods.

"Okay," he says quietly, kissing her on the forehead. He lets go of her and takes a step towards the bedroom for the night, but she stops him.

"Wait," she says.

He turns around. "What?" he asks.

"Aren't you gonna answer me?"

Now he's confused. "What do you mean? You didn't ask me anything."

"I asked you to stay," she says. "I said I want you to stay. You didn't tell me you would."

He opens his mouth to respond, but quickly shuts it and drops his head into his hands to think. When he finally looks up, he appears frustrated, and she hates to think about what that means.

Taking a step towards her, he says, "Ally, you do realize what you're asking me to do, right? You're asking me to give up a record deal with Starr Records to stay with you in New York. You're asking me to give up my dream to stay here." He pauses. "Why are you all of a sudden feeling this way? You were fine with it before."

"I..." she starts. "I don't know. I guess I'm just scared. I've never tried a long distance relationship before, but they don't seem to work out for others."

"Okay, but that's others, not us," Austin says. "You can't compare our relationship to others, Ally. Love is different for everybody. And I know we're stronger than that."

"I didn't say we weren't strong, I just meant that this changes a lot for us. LA is so far away." She pauses. "I just can't do it, Austin. I can't let you go. Not all the way to LA."

This clearly angers Austin, who raises his voice when he says, "Why can't you _let_ me go? I let you go on tour!"

"Touring is one thing, Austin!" she shouts back. "They don't last forever! This is...this is _LA_! It's all the way across the country! It takes months to record songs, and then you might as well stay because then there's meetings and final touches and before you know it, you'll be on tour, too! And once that's done you're right back in the studio again! In LA!"

Austin sighs. "If you're so worried about us being apart for so long, then why don't you come with me?"

"I can't. _My_ studio is here in New York. And you know I'm going back to school next month. They also promised me that my tours will only be in the summer now so I can finish my education at MUNY," she explains. "What about you and Juilliard? What happened to that dream?"

"I only went to Juilliard to become a performer, that's what they're for," Austin replies bitterly. "Well, I'm a performer now! That's my real dream. That's always been my dream."

"Even if it means moving to LA?"

"Even then."

"So, what about me?" she asks.

He sounds tired when he says, "What _about_ you, Ally?"

"What about _us_ , Austin? You're the one that's always been so sure about us! You're the one that always knows we'll last! That we'll be okay! Or has that changed to?"

He sighs. "I don't know about us. Okay? I was willing to try a long distance relationship with you – because I _believe_ we could make it work – but if I'm the only one who has any hope for us, then I see no point anymore."

"What?"

"You're always so worried we won't make it, Ally!" he shouts. "You're scared we won't be able to handle anything that happens! You think everything might ruin us! _I'm_ always the one that has to tell you we'll be fine! _I'm_ always the one saying we'll get through it all! And I'm sick of it, Ally! I can't be with someone that doesn't believe in us!"

She gapes at him. "Are you – are you _breaking up_ with me?"

He just shrugs. "I guess I am." He picks his bags up off the floor again and walks towards the door to leave, but she can't let him have the last word tonight.

"Fine!" she shouts. "Go to LA! See if I care."

His hand hovers over the door handle at this, but in the next moment he recovers and opens the door, slamming it shut behind him. The second he's gone, the tears fall again, heavy and fast. She doesn't even bother walking to the couch, and just sits on the floor, crying into her hands. Because it's over, it's all over, and it's all her fault.

* * *

 **So...**

 **I'm sorry?**

 **Hey, don't hate me, hate the song! Or the code. It's the one that said things went wrong. But if you wanna hate me, I guess that's okay, too. I understand.**

 **\- FictionalMusicReader: Unfortunately, no, I won't be including any of Taylor Swift's other songs in this story. Just the ones from _1989_ , and a couple random songs. Sorry about that!**

 **So, uh, thanks for reading again! Hopefully, you still plan on continuing with this story? I mean, I'd think you'd wanna know what happens next, but maybe that's just me. Anyway. Tell me what you think in the reviews? Thanks again! :)**


	6. Shake It Off

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Thanks for all the responses I got on chapter five! Now here's chapter six. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Shake It Off:  
 _"She danced to forget him."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

The next morning, she wakes up in an empty house hoping her fight with Austin was just an awful nightmare. But when she sees all of his possessions are gone along with him, she knows it was real.

She's tempted to go down to Juilliard to see if he might be there, but his plane left early that morning, and the only way he'd still be in town is if he changed his mind. Based on their fight, she's sure he didn't. If he did, she only hopes he would've came back here to mend things between them.

She's in a bit of a stupor all day, and then all week, and the next thing she knows school is starting again and she's back in MUNY. She's not sure what to do anymore. She wants to fix things with Austin, but what could she say? She's afraid to call, knowing he might not pick up, and text messages would probably go unread. No, if she really wants to fix things, she wants to do it in person. But with him currently in the studio in LA, it's proving to be harder than she thought, and she thinks she might have to just give up on them once and for all.

A couple weeks into the school year, she receives a visit from Cassidy.

"I heard the news," she says when Ally opens the door, and immediately envelopes her in a hug. She hasn't seen much of Cassidy in almost a year, what with Ally becoming busy working on her sophomore album and the two of them not sharing any classes together. But she's glad to see a familiar face right now.

She invites Cassidy in and makes them coffee as Cassidy talks about how school was while

Ally was on tour, aiming to get her mind on something else. But when Ally places the coffee mug in front of her on the kitchen counter, she quiets down.

"So," she starts quietly, tapping her finger on the mug, "did you wanna talk about it?"

Ally shrugs. "I don't know. It's been three weeks. Should I really still be feeling this way?"

"Of course," Cassidy says. "It's only been three weeks, Ally. That's nothing." She pauses. "Do you remember Eric Johnson?"

"Your last boyfriend before you came here?"

"Yeah, him," she confirms. "I must've cried my eyes out for two weeks straight when we broke up. He was mad that I was moving all the way to New York when we had a plan to go to school in San Francisco together. He thought I wasn't as committed to the relationship as he was, so he dumped me. I got over it, but I don't think I even smiled once for a month." She sighs. "It takes time. He was your first real love. You guys were together for a long time. But you'll be okay eventually. Trust me on that."

Ally lets herself smile a little. "Thank you," she says. "I'm not so sure I'll be okay for a while, but... thank you."

"No problem. We all have our nasty breakups at some point. It's only a part of life."

She just nods in agreement.

Cassidy takes a sip of her coffee. "So, uh, how did it happen?" she asks slowly. "Unless you're not ready to talk about it yet."

Ally just shrugs. "It's okay," she says. "But you're right. Talking about it will make it much more real than I want it to be, and I don't think I'm ready for that yet."

Cassidy nods. "I understand," she replies. "But I'm here when you _are_ ready. Okay?"

Ally just nods again. She knows she can count on Cassidy to be there for her when she needs someone, but for now she'd rather keep to herself. She's not ready to let go yet.

* * *

A few more weeks pass, and still nothing's changed. Ally attends her classes in the morning, then hits the studio in the afternoon. If it's a good day, she's usually there until nightfall, and she arrives home in time to have a late dinner and sleep. If's a slow day, she's out by six, and when she gets home she doesn't do much other than eat and distract herself with chores or the television.

She hasn't had a good day at the studio in weeks.

It's not that she doesn't want to work, it's just that she hasn't had any really good ideas for her songs since the breakup. Austin was like her muse, and their relationship inspired a lot of the songs she was able to bring to their first few sessions. But she's been going to the studio for a month now, and they only have two songs complete and lyrics scattered here and there for songs that she can't finish. Her producers offered to find another songwriter to help out, but she wants to do this on her own. She just needs more time.

March comes, and that quickly means the arrival of spring break. Her best friend from Miami, Trish, is flying in to New York to stay with her for the week. She's been attending a business college for the last two years in Wisconsin so she can start her own company when she's done. She hasn't figured out what exactly that company will be, but that hasn't slowed down her drive to success.

Ally drives down to JFK the afternoon Trish is coming to meet her. They haven't seen each other since they departed for school nearly two years ago, so their reunion in the airport is nothing short of emotional. They hug each other tightly, thrilled to be together again. Then they grab Trish's bags, head out to Ally's car, and drive back to her apartment.

"So, how's business school been?" Ally asks once Trish has settled into her apartment. She walks into the kitchen and turns on the coffee pot, then rummages through her fridge to find something decent to eat.

"Eh, it's alright," Trish says, sitting down at the kitchen table. Ally tries not to think about how she's sitting in Austin's usual seat as she pulls out a container of strawberries and places it on the table. Trish takes one as she continues, "The work is pretty easy, but the professors are breathing down our necks half the time about the importance of our assignments and finals. If we don't get a decent grade, apparently the government would never approve of us to open a business or something. It's a bit much, but I'm surviving."

"That's good," Ally says, opening a cupboard to grab some mugs. As she takes two down, she notices a familiar blue mug covered in paw prints sitting at the back. Austin must've forgot to grab his favourite mug before he left. Of course, he probably thought he'd be returning after he was done recording. She closes the cupboard slowly and walks over to the coffee pot to pour their drinks when Trish speaks up again.

"What I want to know about is how _you've_ been doing," she says, and Ally can tell by her tone that she's not referring to school.

Ally just shrugs. "I'm alright. School's good. Recording's good. It's a little slow in the studio at times, but we're working hard."

"You know that's not what I meant," Trish says.

Ally sighs, then picks up their drinks and walks back to the table, placing Trish's mug in front of her and sitting down. She stares at her own mug, dark red and decorated with music notes, filled to the brim with the light brown steaming liquid. She watches the drink swirl around her cup, unsure of how to respond to her friend.

"Ally. You know you can talk to me, right?" Trish asks gently. "I know we haven't seen each other in a while, but I'm still your best friend. I'll always be your best friend."

Ally nods. "I know," she mutters. She looks up, meeting Trish's gaze. "I know."

Trish smiles a little. "So you know you can tell me about this, right? I can help you get through it. I can help you move on."

"But...I don't know if I want to move on yet," she says. "I still care about him, Trish. I wake up _every day_ thinking he might be here, and he never is. I miss him so much. I just – I don't know what to do, Trish. I didn't know it would hurt this much." She lets a tear slide down her cheek at this last sentence, but quickly wipes it away.

"I know," Trish replies. "Trust me, I know. Breakups are hard, but you get through it. You move on. It takes time, but it happens. And until you do, your best bet is to talk it out with some of your friends, take time away. If that doesn't work, try projecting your feelings into your work."

"What do you mean?" Ally asks.

Trish stares at her in shock. "Hello? Do you know who you are? You're Ally Dawson! Singer-songwriter extraordinaire! You perform for a living! Well, take advantage of that. Write about what happened. Sing it, play it, perform it. Make it worth something."

"You want me to write songs about the breakup?" Ally asks.

"What else would you do? It's been done before, and people will continue to do it for years to come! Take advantage of your feelings, Ally, especially when they're this strong. Write about how upset you are, and how much he angers you and annoys you, and then how much better you are now that he's gone. Show him what he lost when he broke up with you."

"But –"

"I know, I know. You still love him. I understand. But you won't forever, and when you don't, you'll either forgive him or hate him. Either way, you win."

"I..." Ally starts, but the look Trish gives her makes her stop. It's never worth it to argue with Trish. What she says goes, so you might as well just drop the arguing and listen. She's usually not wrong.

She sighs. "Okay," she says. "Okay. You're right. I need to...to let go. I need to move on. I need to talk about this."

Trish nods. "There you go! Now, we should probably start with the breakup itself. What went down between you and him before he left?"

Ally opens her mouth to respond, but just as she does, someone knocks on her door. Getting up from the table, she walks to the entryway and opens the door to reveal Cassidy standing there with a notebook in her hand.

"Sorry about returning this so late," she says, holding out the notebook. "But your notes on playing piano were really useful. I almost wanted to keep this forever."

"That's alright," Ally says with a laugh. "I hardly ever use it anymore, but it's nice to have for reference." She takes the notebook, but just before she steps back inside, she remembers a conversation she had with Cassidy a few weeks ago and says, "Hey, Cassidy?"

"Yeah?"

"Remember when you told me I could talk to you, once I was ready and all?"

Cassidy nods.

"Well, I think I'm ready now," Ally says, "and I could use all the friends I can get."

Cassidy smiles. "Of course," she says, stepping inside the apartment. Ally follows close behind, setting the notebook on the counter and standing between her two friends.

"Trish, this is Cassidy, a friend from school," Ally says. "Cassidy, this is Trish, my best friend. We were just about to, uh, talk when you came by."

"Well, I'm glad I came when I did," Cassidy says, adding a small hi to Trish, who says hi back. The three girls then walk into the living room, where they situate themselves on the couch next to Ally. She takes in a deep breath, then talks.

And talks and talks and talks. She must talk for hours, but neither of her friends make any sign of wanting to stop her. They sit and listen as she discusses her relationship with Austin, from their first meet to their first date, down to the tour and the nitty-gritty details of their last fight. She cries a couples time, and each time receives a hug from her friends who let her know it'll be okay and to continue when she's ready. She tells them everything. When she's done, her eyes are damp and her heart is heavy, but she feels as if some of the burden has finally lifted off her shoulders, and she knows it's because of the amazing friends she has.

* * *

The rest of her spring break is spent hanging out with Trish and Cassidy. They spent little time at the apartment, choosing instead to walk around the city. They go to the park and the mall, talking and shopping and having a good time together. On one night, they pass by a club blaring loud music, and immediately Trish and Cassidy want to check it out. Ally quickly objects – she's never been one for parties, and the only clubs she went to were in school – but she loses out, and the two friends manage to drag her inside.

Right away, Ally knows this is a mistake, claiming the loud music will damage her ear drums and her feet are too tired to walk more than a few blocks, much less dance. Cassidy and Trish just shake their heads and walk into the middle of the dance floor, Ally trailing reluctantly behind.

When the song changes, so does her mind.

"Wait a minute!" Ally shouts over the pounding beat. "Is this my song?"

Her friends nod vigorously, and the three of them start jumping along, dancing to the beat of Ally's own song playing through the speakers as their night begins. She hardly notices when the song changes, only thinking about the beat and her friends and having the time of her life.

After about an hour of dancing, Ally stops to take a quick break, and walks up to the bar at the back of the dance floor.

"Water, please," she asks the bartender, who nods and grabs a water bottle from the fridge. She hands him a dollar bill and grabs the bottle, chugging almost the entire thing in one swig.

"Someone's thirsty," a voice says from beside her. She looks over to see a tall boy about her age, with brown hair and a grin on his face as he chuckles about his own comment.

Ally just shrugs. "It's hot in here and I've been dancing for an hour."

The boy laughs. "I get you. This place can get really hot when there's enough people," he agrees. "I'm Ethan, by the way."

"Ally," she replies, taking his outstretched hand and giving it a shake.

Ethan looks at her for only a moment before asking, "Do you wanna dance with me? I know you seem a little tired, but I bet it could be fun."

Ally smiles, then glances in the direction of her friends. They're not looking at her at the moment, but she wonders how they might feel if she ditched them for a complete stranger. She knows they want her to move on at some point, but she's not sure tonight is the right time yet.

Looking back at Ethan, she says, "I appreciate the offer, Ethan, but not tonight. I'd rather just hang with my friends for now. But maybe some other time?"

Ethan shrugs. "That's cool. Maybe I'll see you around, Ally."

"Maybe," she says, then drinks the last of her water before joining her friends again in the middle of the dance floor. Maybe she will be able to move on from Austin. But for now, she wants to have fun with her best friends. For now, she wants to try enjoying being single for a little while.

And after she gets home in the early hours of the morning and Trish is crashed out on her couch, she does the one thing she hasn't been able to do in a month.

She writes a song.

* * *

Ally writes and writes and writes after that night. Spending spring break with her best friends gave her the chance to have the most fun she'd had in a long time, and it sparks something in her. She misses Trish when she has to leave, but she still has Cassidy down the hall, and they spend all their time together when they can. And when the day is over and Ally should be calling it a night, she writes.

She writes about everything. She writes about how the city she has come to call home makes her feel, and the way her first love filled her with hope. She writes about the heart-wrenching pain of the breakup, and then the happiness she felt when she was with her friends. She writes about it all, and everyone at the studio loves it.

In no time, she has enough songs to start really working on her album, and they set to recording them. Then everyone sits down and listen to them, searching for a song that would be her best single.

"I like 'Blank Space,' honestly," says Max, one of her producers. "It's comical, but also catchy."

"I don't know, I think 'All You Had To Do Was Stay' is the best so far," says Mia, her bass player. "It's fun, yet a little sad, and the message behind it is incredible."

"What do you think, Ally?" says Jack, her other producer.

She takes a minute to think about this before finally saying, "'Shake It Off.'"

Everyone in the room looks at one another to see what they think of this idea. When Max finally nods at Jack, he turns back to Ally and says, "I think that's a perfect idea."

Ally smiles, glad everyone was able to come an agreement on what she thinks is her best song yet. And when the song is released a week later and it becomes an instant hit, she knows the public thinks so, too.

Maybe things are finally starting to get better again.

* * *

 **I hope you guys liked it! Despite the fact Ally was still upset about the breakup and there was no Austin, I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Maybe tell me what you thought in a review? I always love receiving those. Thanks for reading! :)**


	7. I Wish You Would

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Man, some of you guys are mean, wanting Ally to be all heartbroken and upset about Austin. I'm just kidding! I get it, haha. But don't worry, there's still plenty of chapters left for Ally to try and figure out what to do about Austin. I'll warn you, it's quite the roller coaster, but I think it's worth the ride in the end. So, here's the next chapter! :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

I Wish You Would:  
 _"He drove past her street at night."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

He comes back to New York a week later.

Her song has hardly been out for a full week when the media announces Austin Moon's return to New York after officially completing his debut album.

"We already have a single picked out and ready to release soon," one article quotes him saying as he boarded his plane at LAX. "Now I'm heading home for what I think is a well-deserved break before things starts to get really crazy for me."

She wishes she didn't think he was coming home to her. Coming home to fix things. But instead she hears he's staying in an apartment near Juilliard for the time being. He's back in the same town as her, and he's making no show of wanting to mend things between them. Like he's already forgotten about them. Like he's moved on without her.

"Stop reading that stuff," Cassidy says to her one day at lunch. They're sitting in a diner downtown, trying to enjoy a meal of cheeseburgers and fries. Instead, Ally is browsing the Internet again for any more news on Austin's arrival.

She sighs, then shuts her phone off and puts it down. "I'm sorry. I just can't help it. I hate knowing he's back in town and not seeing him."

"You seem to be seeing quite a bit of him on your phone," Cassidy points out.

Ally glares, but doesn't comment on this. She says, "I mean in person. We had plans, Cass. He was gonna come back to our place when he finished recording. We were gonna try and work out a way for us to be together while he was on tour. He believed in us, and I tore it all down in one night."

Cassidy sighs, an expression of sympathy on her face. "I know you think that, Ally, but it's not your fault," she starts. "He was the one that ended it, remember?"

"Yes, but –"

"I _know_ you think you started it, but you guys were bound to have a breakup at some point. No couple goes without at least a few breakups in their relationship," she explains. "Look at Carter and I. We've been together for almost two years now, but we haven't gone without a breakup or two. They happen sometimes."

"If you're trying to tell me that we'll be back together by next month, I have a feeling you're wrong about that."

Cassidy thinks for a moment, then says, "I think – and I know you don't want to hear this – but I really think it's time you move on, Ally. Because I don't think you'll be back together next month. I don't think you'll ever be back together."

Ally sits up straight. "What makes you think that?" she asks.

"I mean, look at you two! You're both rising pop stars whose lives are on opposite sides of the country! You broke up because of your professions, and I know neither one of you would give up your career for the other just to make things work. It's not worth it." She takes a deep breath. "You guys had a good run, but it's time to _let go_. It's been three months. He's back and he's not showing any signs of wanting to make contact. I really think that's it for you two."

Ally looks down at her lunch, now cold from her ignoring it this whole time. Not looking up, she says, "Maybe you're right. Maybe I am just over thinking this whole thing. He's here and he's not talking, so... What more can there be left to do than to say goodbye?"

"Now we're talking," Cassidy says. "It's time to move on from this jerk that broke your heart. We're gonna start by getting rid of everything that reminds you of him. Photos, jewelry, clothes –"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down," Ally cuts in. "What do you mean, get rid of everything?"

"We've gotta cleanse your place of him! He lived with you, he must've left some things behind. And of course, he probably gave you things, too." Cassidy pauses when she sees the sullen look on Ally's face. "You wanna move on from him, don't you?"

Ally sighs. "I guess so," she mutters, but her hand reaches up to the small music note hanging around her neck, and she tucks it inside her shirt. Maybe some things can stay, at least for a while.

* * *

A few days later, Ally places a box on her kitchen table.

"Is that everything?" Cassidy asks, peering inside. She picks up a red t-shirt and examines it, then places it back on the pile.

Ally nods. "I think so," she replies, rifling through the pile herself. "We've got a few shirts, a sweater, a bracelet, his whistle necklace – which I'm surprised he left behind – a few notebooks, and a guitar pick."

"What about all the things he gave to you?" Cassidy asks. "You did grab those, too, right?"

"Yes, Cassidy," she says, exasperated. "Jewelry, a few vinyls and CD's, the movie _Letters to Juliet_ , a dress, hat, and scarf, and...yeah."

And his favourite book ( _If I Stay_ by Gayle Forman **(1)** ) and her music note necklace, but Cassidy doesn't need to know about those.

"Okay," Cassidy says, taking the box in her hands. "Then I guess I'll take this out of your hands and go deal with it. And when I come back, maybe we can talk about finding you a new guy."

Ally stays quiet, watching as Cassidy walks out of the apartment and down to her own. Alone for a few minutes, she sits down at the kitchen table and pulls the necklace out from under her shirt, admiring it. As much as she wants to move on and let go of Austin, she still feels attached to him somehow, like their story isn't over just yet. She's not ready to move on to the next chapter in her life, no matter how many people keep telling her to flip the page. She's still stuck staring at the last words they spoke to each other, and she can't help but wish she could go back and rewrite them.

* * *

She's not thinking about the path she's taking home the next day from the studio until she sees the familiar sign of the coffee shop they met by, and she slows down.

She's been making sure to walk a different route ever since they broke up three months back. Passing it was a constant reminder of what she lost, and after a while it just became a part of her normal routine. So why is she passing it by today of all days when she's been doing so well recently?

As she looks through the windows inside, she sees why.

Sitting in one of the high tables near the back of the shop, she sees the back of an all-too familiar blonde head. He's looking away, thankfully, so he can't see her, but a part of her wants to stand here and wait until he turns around, hoping to catch a glimpse of him for the first time since he left. She even takes a step forward, considering going inside and 'accidentally' bumping into him. Though what she would say to him, she has no idea.

She lets out a deep breath, then looks away. There's no point. It's been three months, and he hasn't made a single sign of wanting to reconnect. If he's let go, so should she.

Not looking back (no matter how much she wants to), she continues her walk home, trying to push him out of her mind.

But a few hours after the arrives home, however, things get stranger.

She's been out on her balcony reading for an hour, then closes her book and decides to head inside. As she does, she just so happens to look over the railing and spot a familiar looking red car driving past. She would've paid little attention to it – he can't be the only person in all of New York to own a red car – if not for the fact that it was driving much slower than the speed limit. She can't help but imagine the driver inside looking up out of his window, hoping to catch a glimpse of someone standing outside of her apartment. So she stays there, watching the car's slow pace, until it reaches the end of the block and speeds up, driving out of sight.

* * *

"What do you think of Trent Rivers?" Cassidy asks her a day later, back in Ally's kitchen again. They'd been searching through a list of all of MUNY's male students for days now, and still haven't come up with anyone yet for Ally.

Ally shakes her head. "No. He seems too interested in fame. Not to mention, I heard he cheated on Kira."

Cassidy looks up in shock. "Did he really?"

Ally nods. "Yeah, that's why they broke up," she confirms. "I'm not surprised. They seem really different. Kira's sweet, and Trent's..."

"Sour?" Cassidy finishes for her. They laugh.

"Okay, next one."

Cassidy pauses to scroll through her phone. Then, "Ooh, what about Dallas? I know you guys went out for a bit last year. Maybe you could try rekindling the flame?"

Ally shakes her head again. "No. I'm not really interested in him anymore."

"If it's because of Austin, then –"

"It's not," Ally protests. At Cassidy's look, she says, "Okay, sort of. But can you blame me? I went from Dallas Lawrence to _Austin Moon_. One I had a small crush on, the other I'm in – I was in love with for over eight months. There's no comparison anymore."

Cassidy sighs. "Fine. No Dallas." She continues scrolling through her phone, looking for any other possible candidates for Ally's future boyfriend. When she finally finds one, she starts, "Oh, how about –" but is cut off by Ally's phone ringing.

Ally freezes.

Cassidy glances between her and the phone. "What's wrong?"

She'd know that ringtone anywhere. She's reminded of him every time she hears that song anywhere else.

She looks up. "It's him."

Cassidy meets her gaze with equal shock. "You're joking," she says.

Ally shakes her head, then picks up the phone but doesn't answer. Looking at Cassidy again, she says, "What do I do? Should I pick up, or –?"

Cassidy shakes her head frantically. "No, no, whatever you do, don't pick up!" she says. "We're trying to get you to move on, so you need to make him think you're over him. Hang up!"

Ally glances between her friend and the phone, unsure of which one to listen to. Her eyes fall onto the familiar name flashing on her screen as the phone continues to ring. Her thumb hovers over the answer button, almost too tempted to press it, wanting only to hear his voice one more time. But when she presses her thumb down, it's over the decline button, and the ringing comes to an abrupt end.

Cassidy breathes out a sigh of relief. "You did it!" she says. "For a minute there, I thought you were gonna pick up."

Ally puts the phone down slowly, but her feelings are very much the opposite of Cassidy's.

"So did I," she mutters to herself. "So did I."

* * *

That night, she can't sleep, her mind consumed with thoughts of that phone call.

Because he called. Austin called. He reached out to her for the first time after three months of nothing. He called her, and all she did was hang up.

How could she have been so stupid? He reached out, and she probably just pushed him even further away than before! All he probably wanted to was talk, catch up, maybe even just say hello, and she hung up on him. He probably thinks she hates him now. He probably won't even bother trying to call her again. She'll never hear that ringtone play again, all because she hung up before even giving him a chance to say anything.

Sitting up, she reaches over to her bedside table and picks up her phone. She turns it on and goes into her contacts and hits his name. She could call him back. She _should_ call him back. She could tell him her friend took her phone, or she didn't read the name, or something, anything but the truth. They could talk again, maybe even go back to normal. They could fix everything. All she'd have to do is call back.

She lowers the phone. Is there any point, though? He might not even pick up. And when she looks at the time, she's sure he's asleep, anyway. But if he was awake, would he do the same thing? Would he consider picking up before finally ending the call, realizing he actually _doesn't_ want to speak to her again? Would he hang up out of spite for her hanging up on him before? Would he have given up on them, too?

She turns off the phone and puts it back on the table, then lies back down. She was so close to finally moving on, and this happens. First he moves back to New York, then he tries calling her. If that's not a sign, then she doesn't know what is. A sign that she was right. Their story is far from over, and she's not giving up on them. Not now, not ever. She _will_ get him back. She knows she can.

* * *

 **(1) _If I Stay_ by Gayle Forman is a real book, and it is absolutely incredible, so I recommend reading it if you haven't yet.**

 **\- axswiftxa13: haha, they were! I used Max's name on purpose, but Jack I only noticed after I'd used it. Nice catch! :P**

 **So, that's chapter seven! Thanks for reading! Oh, and shoutout to everyone who's been reviewing every chapter so far. Obviously I'm not expecting everyone to do that, but it's really sweet seeing those familiar names in the reviews. Anyways. Thanks again! :)**


	8. Bad Blood

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Not much to say except here's chapter eight! Hope you guys like it. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Bad Blood:  
 _"She made friends and enemies."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

A few weeks after Austin's return, Ally wakes up to a call from Cassidy shouting at her about the Worldwide Music Awards happening soon – and that Ally was nominated for Best New Artist.

" _What_?" Ally practically screams.

Cassidy laughs. "Yeah! They just put up the nominations this morning and I saw your name on the list! You're in the running for an award! How cool is that?"

"This is...unbelievable," she says. She knew the WMA's were coming up soon – she received an invitation a week ago – but to actually be nominated is a whole other feeling she can hardly express.

"Hey, Cassidy," Ally starts, remembering something she read in the invitation, "I'm allowed to bring a guest with me to the award show. Did you maybe wanna come with me?"

Cassidy sighs. "I'd love to, I really would, but with it being so close to finals, I need to get as much studying done as I possibly can. I'm sorry."

Ally just shrugs. "It's alright. I probably wouldn't be going either if I wasn't nominated," she says.

"Still," Cassidy replies. But Ally just tells her it's okay again, and they bid each other goodbye.

After hanging up, Ally dials a different number, glad to hear Trish pick up. She's ecstatic when she agrees to fly out to New York for the weekend to attend with her. So, two weeks later, on the night of the Worldwide Music Awards, Ally and Trish dress up for the show and take a limo out.

It's only when they officially arrive on the red carpet that she thinks coming might've been a big mistake.

Despite Cassidy wanting her to move on, Ally's still continued to keep an eye on Austin and his career ever since he came back to New York. Unfortunately, not much has been said other than that his new single will be out in a couple weeks. What she forgot was that, while he wasn't nominated for any awards, he was still invited to attend the show – something she quickly remembers when she looks down the red carpet and sees a familiar head of blonde hair farther down. She looks away, hoping he doesn't spot her or come over to say hi (no matter how badly she wants him to, now is just not the right time). Either this works, or he didn't want to say anything, because she's able to make it inside and to her seat without running into him.

During one of the commercial breaks, however, she runs into someone else.

"Ally?" she hears from behind her as she and Trish are checking out the backstage of the show. When she turns around she spots none other than –

"Dez?" Ally replies, walking up to him. He envelopes her in a quick hug, shocking her, but he lets go before she can hug back. "What are you doing here?" she asks.

He shrugs. "I was invited. One of my music videos was nominated," he explains.

"Wait, you directed a music video?" she asks, remembering that Dez was in the program for film school but forgetting if he got in. They didn't talk much, her and Dez, only exchanging the occasional hi when she visited the dorm over the summer.

Dez nods. "Yep. I've directed a few now. The one that was nominated was –"

"Dez!" a voice shouts from behind him.

"– hers," Dez finishes, referring to the girl that shows up next to him. "What do you want, Jasmine?"

"You're supposed to be in the audience with me!" Jasmine says. "What are you doing backstage?"

"I was just catching up with a friend," Dez replies, pointing to Ally. Jasmine finally turns her attention to Ally, looking at her as if she's never seen her before.

"Oh," she says. "Ally Dawson. You know my competition?"

At first, Ally doesn't understand what this means. Jasmine was nominated for Best Music Video, not Best New Artist. But then the name clicks, and she remembers.

"Oh! You're Jasmine Fiera!" Ally says.

"Obviously," Jasmine confirms, albeit rudely. "And _you're –_ " She turns back to Dez, "– fraternizing with the enemy! Ally's my biggest competition for this award, I can't have my director seen with her."

"Jasmine, nobody's gonna pay attention to a director at an award show," Dez argues. "I'll only be a second, alright?"

Jasmine just groans, then storms away.

"Sorry about her," Dez replies. "I would've came with Austin if it wasn't for the nomination." But a second after he says this, he realizes his mistake.

"So, you're still friends?" Ally asks tentatively.

Dez nods. "Yeah. We've been friends for years, but you knew that. It's how we got into the program together."

Ally nods slowly. "That's...nice."

Dez sighs. "Look, he told me what went down between you two. He feels bad, he really does –"

"Then why hasn't he said anything?" Ally cuts in. "He called me once, Dez. _Once_. And he hasn't tried again. Why?"

"He's afraid of messing up again. You guys separated on really bad terms, and he's scared he'll make it worse by trying to apologize." Dez pauses. "He thinks you hate him."

"Why would he think that? He broke up with me," Ally states.

"Well, that's one reason. You might resent him because of the way he ended it. Not to mention, you hung up on him when he called – which is why he hasn't tried calling again, by the way. He didn't like that," Dez explains. "And, well, your new song is another."

Ally crosses her arms. "My song?"

"Yeah. 'Shake It Off?'" Dez says. "'Player's gonna play?' 'Heartbreaker's gonna break?' He thinks you're talking about him."

"Oh." She knows she wrote quite a few songs about Austin, but when she wrote Shake It Off, it was the night after she went to that club over spring break. Austin wasn't on her mind much that night, much less a part of that song.

"Well, you can tell him it's not," Ally finally says. "And I don't hate him. I just..."

"Miss him?" Dez finishes. Ally doesn't object. "He misses you, too."

Ally just shrugs, then glances at Trish. She doesn't look too impressed, knowing how much progress Ally has made in the past few months without Austin. Talking to Dez has reminded her of her feelings again, and so without saying goodbye, she takes hold of Trish's arm and walks back into the audience, ready for the rest of the show.

"You gonna be okay?" Trish asks once they're seated.

Ally just shrugs.

The rest of the show goes by quickly, full of fun performances and award winners. Dez's music video for Jasmine Fiera wins, and she's only too happy to accept the award. Nearing the end of the show, Best New Artist is announced.

"Out of the four nominees, the award for Best New Artist goes to..." The announcer opens the card, then continues, "...Ally Dawson!"

Ally straightens in shock. She won? She won an award? When she looks at Trish next to her and sees her excitement for her best friend, she knows she wasn't hearing things. Quickly, she gets out of her seat and goes on stage to accept the award.

"Oh, my gosh," she says. "This is absolutely incredible! I never dreamed of winning any award in years! Thank you!" She pauses as the crowd applauds her. "Um, I didn't exactly prepare a speech, so I'll do my best." She pauses. "Thank you to my family and friends for supporting me on this journey, without who I could never have made it to where I am today. Thank you to MUNY for giving me a chance. Ramone Records, my producers Max and Jack, my band, thank you all for sticking with me on this journey. And..."

As she hesitates over the last name, her eyes fall onto him. Austin, sitting only three rows behind Trish and little to the right. He's smiling, but she's not sure if it's for her or for show. After all, the world knows they were together. Maybe he's putting on a facade to look good.

Realizing she's been standing here at a loss for words for a minute, she clears her throat. "Sorry. Uh, and thank you to all the fans that voted! I really appreciate everything you've done for me, so... Thank you." And then the transition music fills the stage and she's led backstage for photos and interviews.

Only ten minutes later, she sees Trish arrive backstage, too, searching for her. Ally quickly finishes up her current interview before walking over to her friend.

"Did I look as ridiculous as I think I did up there?" Ally asks.

Trish shakes her head. "You were fine. You were quiet for a couple seconds, but other than that, you were okay."

Ally lets out a breath of relief. "Thank goodness," she says. "I thought I must've been quiet for a minute or something."

Trish shakes her head again. "Why did you stop, though? What happened?"

"Well, while I was giving my speech, I was looking out into the audience and I saw –"

"Ally."

There it is. That voice she knows so well. The voice that's been haunting her for months. The one she misses all too much. Turning around, she lets herself look at him properly for the first time since January.

"Austin," she says. "Hi."

He smiles a little. Gesturing to her award, he says, "Congratulations. You deserve it."

"Thanks," she says quietly.

"No problem." Silence. Then, "Look, I just wanted to say that –"

"Ally, you have another interview you need to get to," a backstage manager says as he approaches. Without giving her a chance to say anything, she's dragged away from Austin, his sentence left hanging between them. And when she turns around, he's gone.

* * *

 **\- Yaiii: Actually, I'm planning on having 14 chapters instead of 13. The last chapter is really long, so I've decided to split it. There could be 15 if people want an epilogue, but as of right now, this story will have at least 14 chapters.**

 **Thanks for reading! I know this chapter is kinda short, but hey, at least we finally got to see some interaction between Austin & Ally again. Maybe let me know what you thought in the reviews? :)**


	9. Wildest Dreams

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Sorry about the late update! I kind of completely forgot about uploading on Monday? I also had work, but when I went to upload yesterday, the site was being weird, so I couldn't really do anything about that. But here it is! Chapter nine. :)  
**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Wildest Dreams:  
 _"He only saw her in his dreams."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

Ally's making dinner one night when the doorbell rings.

Brushing off her hands, she walks into the entryway and opens the door. Standing in her doorway, a smile on his face, is someone she never thought she'd see again.

"Austin?" she asks in shock.

He grins. "Hey, Ally," he says. "It's been a while."

She nods. "No kidding," she replies, then walks into his open arms and envelopes him in a hug. When she pulls back, she asks, "So...what are you doing here?"

"Actually," he starts, "I came to here ask you something. Well, it's more of an offer, but it requires an answer from you, so it's kinda like a question."

She laughs. She missed his oddball comments. "Well, what's your offer/question?"

He chuckles a little, then says, "I wanna get back together with you."

She gapes at him. "What?"

"I know we parted on a bad note and I haven't said anything to you for months, but I wanna fix that. I feel awful for the things I said to you that night. And when I saw you at the award show, I realized that I'm still in love with you, Ally, and I wanna get back together," he explains. "Do you feel the same way?"

"I..." she starts. Here he is, saying the words she's been wanting to hear him say for months, but now that the moment's here, she has no idea how to respond.

"Ally?" he asks. "Ally?"

"I'm fine," she mutters, but he acts as if he didn't hear her as he repeats her name again.

"Ally," he says, more persistent than before. "Ally. You need to wake up."

"What?" she asks. Wake up? She's standing right here, wide awake.

"Wake up!" he shouts, and the next thing she knows she's sitting up straight in her bed, Trish standing over her.

"God, you're a heavy sleeper," Trish says. "Do you realize what time it is?"

Ally just shakes her head, rubbing her eyes. "No, why?"

"It's almost noon. You've sleep half the day away." She pauses. "Is this because of Austin again?"

Ally doesn't say anything, and Trish knows she's right.

She sighs, then sits on the edge of the bed. "Ally, I know you still miss him. But it's been over a month since you last saw him and nearly five months since you broke up. Don't you think it's time?"

Ally just shrugs, but she can't deny that Trish has a point.

Ally just shrugs, but she can't deny that Trish has a point.

A month has passed since she last saw Austin at the award show, and neither one of them has tried to make contact with the other since then. She's thought about it a dozen times, but she always gives up, afraid that he's not going to pick, or that he'll have nothing good to say to her, or to find out he changed his number but never bothered to tell her. Anything but the possibility that he'll actually pick up and agree to talk to her. That he wants to fix things, too.

She doesn't mention the dream to Trish, but she doesn't have to. It's not the first time she's had that dream, or others similar to it. They all start with him coming up to her and announcing that he wants to get back together with her, and they all end with her unable to give an answer and either waking up on her own or from Trish shouting at her. At first she thought it was a sign that she still misses him, but the more she thinks about it, the more she wonders if her subconscious is trying to tell her something else. How come she can never tell him her answer? Why is she always at a loss for words? Is she just too shocked to form the words? Or is she actually unsure of what she would tell him if he did suggest they get back together? It's been five months. Maybe her mind is telling her to move on from him.

She shakes her head. She doesn't know what her dreams mean. They're just dreams, after all. They probably mean nothing other than her obvious inability to move on from her ex-boyfriend.

Ex-boyfriend. The word alone sends a stab of pain to her heart, though not as hard as it used to be. _That_ has to mean something. Right?

Stretching a little, she removes her covers and gets out of bed, deciding to get dressed. Trish says she'll be waiting in the living room/her current bedroom – after exams, Trish decided to best thing to do for Ally was to stay with her for the summer to help her move on from Austin – and leaves Ally alone again.

What is she going to do?

* * *

That day, she spends a long time mulling over new song ideas in the studio. They're coming close to finishing this album, but she's beginning to have trouble with her writing again, so she decides to take an early leave and head home in time to make dinner.

She just can't get that dream out of her head.

She knows she's had similar dreams before, but this one just sticks out the most for some reason. Maybe all the others weren't as realistic; she doesn't know. But she does know that it must mean something. She's sure it means she wants him to ask her to get back together with him, but she still doesn't understand the rest.

"Maybe your conscience is trying to tell you that the only way you'll see him again is just in your wildest dreams," she mutters to herself as she reaches the doors to her apartment building. Just as she reaches for the door handle, she stops.

"Wildest dreams..." she repeats. "See you again...even if it's just in my wildest dreams..."

She can feel her creative process starting up again, and she rushes up to her apartment, pulling out her songbook the second she gets inside. She barely gives Trish a second glance as she walks into her room and sits at her desk, the ideas flowing through her. And once her pen touches the paper, it doesn't stop moving.

* * *

 _Say you'll remember me  
Standing in a nice dress  
Staring at the sunset, babe  
Red lips and rosy cheeks  
Say you'll see me again  
Even if it's just in your  
Wildest dreams, ohh, ah  
Wildest dreams, ohh, ah_

The song comes to an end, and she takes her hands off the piano, looking over at Trish and Cassidy on the stools at the kitchen counter, a nervous smile present.

"So," she says, "what do you think?"

Cassidy and Trish only give each other once quick glance, then look back at Ally. They smile.

"It's incredible!" Cassidy shouts the same time as Trish says, "It sounds amazing!"

Ally grins. "Really? You don't think it's too...sad or anything?"

Cassidy shakes her head. "No way. It sounds beautiful, Ally. Really."

"Thanks," she replies.

"Seriously, Ally, this song is the best. It's almost haunting, in a way," Trish says. "I bet if you added the right background music and sang exactly as you just did for us, it'd be perfect."

Ally's smile grows. "Well, I'm glad you guys like it," she says. "I need a new song for my producers in two days and I was sure I wouldn't have anything for them this week." _Again_ , she refrains from adding. She's in too good of a mood to worry too much about her slow progress on this album right now. She's just taking her time. She wants this album to be perfect. So far, she thinks it might be heading there.

"So, how'd you come up with it?" Trish asks. "I mean, I'm pretty sure I know who it's _about_ , but it's different from your others. It almost sounds like...like you're moving on or something."

Ally sighs. She figured they'd want to have this conversation sooner or later.

"I'm not really sure how I came up with this, to be honest," she starts. "I was just thinking about these, uh, dreams I keep having, and something I said sort of stuck with me, and from there, the rest just wrote itself."

"Wait, what dreams are you having?" Cassidy asks.

"About Austin," she replies. She explains the similar scenario of each of them, how he asks to get back together and her worry as to why she can never answer his question. When she finishes, both of her friends are quiet.

After a couple minutes, Cassidy speaks up.

"Ally," she starts, "do you still love him? Austin?"

She's startled by such a forward question, but answers, "I – Well, I – I mean..."

"Be honest," Cassidy says.

She pauses. "I still love him," she finally says.

Cassidy nods. "Okay. Now, are you still _in_ love with him?"

" _In_ love?" Ally repeats. "Is there a difference?"

Cassidy nods again. "Big difference."

Trish agrees. "Huge," she says. "I mean, I know I love you guys, but I'm not _in_ love with either of you. No offence."

Cassidy laughs, and Ally allows herself to laugh a little, too. But she does see their point. She thinks about what they said, about the differences, and she wonders if maybe that's what's changed. She loves Austin, she always has, but is she still _in_ love with him? Would her heart still skip a beat if she were to see him again? Does she still feel like she's missing a part of herself with him gone?

If he were to come to her apartment right now and ask to get back together, would she say yes?

The answer to these questions is surprisingly simple: no.

When she remembers how she saw him at the award show last month, her heart didn't skip a beat when she heard his voice, nor did it when she finally saw him. Her heartbeat raced a little, yes, but from nerves, not love. And she hasn't felt like she's been missing something for a few weeks now. She feels like someone that has finally picked up the broken pieces of herself and is slowly putting them back together. There's still cracks, but with time she knows they'll fade away, too.

And she thinks she finally understands why she could never answer Austin's question in her dreams. Because, like in her dreams, she's not sure she wants him back anymore. She loved him once, and she still cares about him, but what they had is a part of her past, and she's not sure she wants it back anymore. She'll never forget him, or them and what they had, but it's over. They broke up five months ago. It's time to let go.

Looking up at her friends expectant faces, she manages a smile.

"No," she says. "I'm not in love with him. Not anymore."

Her friends smile back at her, and she can tell that's exactly what they were hoping for her to say. And she can finally admit that she agrees with them.

* * *

That night, just before bed, she pulls a few things out of her drawers and lays them on her bed: a necklace, a book, and an envelope.

Sitting down next to the pile, she picks up the necklace first. It's the music note necklace, the one Austin gave her on their first date when they'd only known each other for a week and didn't know how far they would go. She smiles at the memory. It was the first symbol of their love for each other, and it's her favourite gift from him. Slowly, she puts it back down, then reaches for the book next to it.

In the middle of the summer, her and Austin went shopping at a book store, and he decided to pick up a book called _If I Stay_ by Gayle Forman **(1)**. They'd both heard of it, what with the movie being released, but she had yet to read it. So he bought it, and said he'd lend it to her when he was done with it. However, he decided to give it to her as a keepsake instead.

"Why are you giving me this?" she asked that night. "I thought you loved it."

"I do," he replied. "But I love you more, and this book reminded me of that."

She scrunched her eyebrows in confusion. "How so? The book is about a car crash."

"It is," he agreed, "but there's a lot more to it than that. The book discusses a lot of the relationship between the main character and her boyfriend, Mia and Adam. They were drawn to each other because of their shared love of music, despite how different they were – not unlike me and you," he explained. "Also, Mia wants to go to Juilliard, just like I do."

Ally smiled. "Did she get in?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I think I'll have to pick up the sequel to find out that. But I hope so."

He smiled at her, and she leaned up and kissed him.

"Well, thank you," she said. "I'll cherish it always."

Now, Ally is smiling down at the book in her hand. It really did reminder her of them in a strange way. She still doesn't know what happened to Mia and Adam in the end, considering neither one of them checked out the sequel. Maybe she'll pick it up herself in the future.

Putting the book down, she reaches for the envelope, then opens it and pulls out the stack of photos inside.

Just before she left for her tour, Austin took her to the zoo in town for a final date before they would be apart for three months. Instead of taking pictures on their phones like most people, he decided to pick up a disposable camera at the gift shop and took their pictures on that. As she rifles through them, she remembers many of the events that went with them. There are some typical ones of the animals – giraffes, elephants, lions and tigers, etc. – but there were also some of them goofing off, like her laughing into her ice cream at some joke he said, or him acting like a monkey when they were looking at the monkeys, or the one he took of him kissing her cheek next to the flamingos. In that one, both their eyes are shut, and she looks like she was in the middle of a laugh. She can't remember why – maybe he caught her off guard, or said something ridiculous, she doesn't know – but it makes her smile either way. It was a good day, that was. She slowly puts the photos back inside the envelope, placing it back on the bed.

Standing up, she goes to her closet and opens the door, then pulls down a box from the shelf and brings it back to her bed. She has a lot of keepsakes in this box, from fancy jewelry her parents got her to homemade gifts from friends and a photo album. Picking up the necklace, book, and photo envelope off the bed, she places them inside the box, then closes the lid and walks back to the closet to put it on the shelf again.

She'll never forget the memories she has of her time with Austin, but at least now she has a place to put some of the physical objects she no longer needs. Because it's time to move on from him. There's no longer any point in waiting around for a miracle that will never come. She doesn't need a miracle anymore. Right now, she needs time for herself, and that's exactly what she's going to get.

* * *

 **(1) I mentioned this once before in this story. Still a real novel. Still highly recommend it.**

 **So, I know a lot of you are probably gonna be a little mad that Ally's 'finally moving on' from Austin, but worry not! If anyone knows anything about the song that comes after this (and the code, too), then I think you'll be pleased with what happens next.**

 **Thanks for reading! Maybe leave a review? :)**


	10. How You Get The Girl

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: I decided to update a little earlier than usual since the last chapter was late. So, here's chapter ten! :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

How You Get The Girl:  
 _"Then one day he comes back."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

Three weeks later, everything changes again. But this time, it isn't her fault.

She's just gotten back home from a busy day at the studio to find her apartment empty. Trish left a note on the kitchen counter that reads, _Since you don't seem to be answering your phone – I'm out with Cassidy while you're at the studio. We should be back before seven._

She pulls her phone out of her purse, then turns it on. Trish must've forgotten Ally likes to turn off her phone when she was at the studio. It helped her concentrate better. Turning it on, she can see all the messages she received from Trish while she was at the studio, most trying to get her attention and the last saying the same thing on the note.

She puts her purse down on the kitchen counter, then glances at the time. 6:27PM. They won't be back for another half hour, it seems. So, putting her phone down, she turns on the TV to the music channel, then turns it up loud and walks into the kitchen again, preparing to start dinner.

As soon as she has everything she needs set out to start cooking, the doorbell rings.

"Back already?" she says to herself as she turns the volume down on the TV. It's only been about five minutes. But when she reaches the door, the person standing on the other side isn't Cassidy or Trish. In fact, it's last person she ever expected to see again.

"Austin?" she asks in shock.

He smiles nervously. "Hi, Ally," he says.

She knows the polite thing to do would be to hug him, or invite him in, but she does neither of those things. Instead, she says, "What are you doing here?"

"I, uh, I wanted to talk to you," he says slowly. "Can I come in?"

Ignoring his question, she asks, "What did you want to talk about?"

"I..." he starts. "Is it alright if I tell you inside your apartment instead? It's kind of...personal."

She sighs. It looks like she's not gonna be able to get rid of him easily. Opening the door wider, she says, "I guess you can come in."

"Thanks," he says, walking inside. Looking around, he asks, "Are you alone right now?"

She shuts the door, then crosses the floor to where he's standing by the coffee table, but keeps a safe distance away from him. Crossing her arms, she says, "I am alone. Now, can you please tell me why you're here, Austin?"

He nods. "I will. I just...I don't know where to start."

"The beginning, maybe?" she suggests, suddenly angry. Angry that he broke up with her, that he came back to New York but didn't try to talk to her, that he showed up just after she started to get over him. "Why are you here? Why did you come back to New York? Why didn't you try to talk to me once ever since you moved back?" She pauses. "Why did you say the things you did to me six months ago?"

He looks down, sticking his hands in his pockets. He shrugs. "It's kind of a long story, I guess. All of it. Everything that happened."

"Tell it," she says.

He nods again, then walks over to the couch and sits down. She hesitates, then reluctantly follows and sits next to him.

Austin takes a deep breath. "Before I start, can I just say how sorry I am about everything I said? I don't know what I was thinking. I _wasn't_ thinking. I was just...I don't know. But I didn't mean it."

She just shakes her head. "I don't care, Austin."

"Right," he mutters. Clearing his throat, he starts.

"After the fight, I went to a hotel downtown to stay at until I had to leave for my plane. But I didn't sleep. The second I walked out that door, I regretted everything I said. But I was too afraid to take it back, so I kept walking. I thought maybe I could try and fix things in the morning, that maybe you'd forgive me and show up before I left, but you didn't. So, I went to LA.

"It was nice, LA. It's big. Easy to get lost in. So is New York, but it wasn't like New York, and I didn't like that. I started recording the day after I arrived, but right away we had problems. See, I can't write very well, so Jimmy had to hire a couple songwriters, but even then, it wasn't right. Something was off. And I quickly learned that it was me. Because of me, because of the breakup, I just...wasn't right. I was sad a lot, and I kept snapping at people for no reason. I think there was a couple times when I wanted to give up on the whole thing and fly back to New York, but I stuck my ground. Eventually, one my songwriters just told me to write down what I was feeling, and then I was off. I channeled my feelings into my music, and everything was good – at least, at the studio.

"Like I said, I liked LA, but it wasn't New York, so I knew after I was done I had to come back. I missed this place. It's my home now." He pauses to face Ally, who looks down at her hands in her lap. "I wanted to talk to you. Every day I was in LA, I wanted to call. But I knew the conversation we needed to have couldn't be done over the phone. So I waited. And when I came back to New York, I think I just lost the courage to reconnect. I was afraid it was too late. So I told myself to let go, and to leave you alone.

"But I saw you _everywhere I went_ , Ally. I went to that coffee shop we first met at, the one by the corner? One night, I looked out the window and I could've sworn I saw you walking past. But by the time I made it outside, you were gone."

"That was me," she mutters.

"What?"

She looks up. "That was me. Outside the coffee shop. I walked past that night and saw you inside. I almost went inside, too, but I figured you hated me or something, so I just...went home."

"What would make you think I hated you?" he asks.

"Because, Austin, you didn't try talking to me once in over three months! You dumped me, then moved to LA! And when you came back, you made no effort to fix anything. I know you said you were afraid to, but you could've at least _tried_ , Austin. It would've counted for something."

"I know, and I get that, and I'm sorry, Ally," he apologizes. "But like you said, it'd been three months! I thought we were over. But that day, the day I saw you, my mind changed again.

"After I saw you outside the coffee shop, I decided to drive past your place to see if you were home. I know you're like four stories up, but I figured I might see something. And I did. You were standing outside on your balcony, looking down. Looking at me, I thought. But you made no sign that you knew it was me, so I just kept driving. But I never stopped thinking about you."

This time, she doesn't tell him that she was thinking the same thing.

He continues, "The next day, I finally decided to take a direct approach. I called you. For the first time in over three months, I finally called you. And I could hardly believe it when you hung up on me. I didn't even get the chance to say hello. The phone just kept ringing, and then it just...stopped. And I think that's when I knew you were finally over me.

"It only got worse a few days later when someone came to my apartment and left a box in front of my door. There was no note, just a plain box out in the hallway. And it was full of our stuff. Things I'd left behind, or things I gave you." He pauses. "Do you know how much it hurt me to find that there? To not even see you do it, but know that you had come to my place and gave me back all of my things? Like you had officially kicked me out of your life for good? Because it really hurt, Ally. It felt like someone had come up behind me and just stabbed me right through. You did that to me."

"I didn't," she mutters.

"What do you mean, you didn't? Who else would've had all of our stuff?" he asks.

"Cassidy," she replies. "She, uh, she talked me into going through my things and getting rid of anything that was yours. She said she'd take care of it. I didn't realize she meant that she'd be giving it all back to you. For that, I'm sorry."

Austin just shrugs. "It's whatever now. I got over it eventually. At least, I thought I did, until I saw you at the WMA's. It all came back, when I saw you sitting in front of me. You had no idea how close we were, and not once did you turn around to see if maybe I was sitting behind you. I tried not to let that get to me, knowing you probably weren't even trying to look for me. But I had hope. And I think when I saw you backstage, I could tell just by the way you looked at me that we weren't over yet. And I knew I had to do something about that.

"So, here we are. It's been a couple months, I know, but because of my music I had to keep putting it off. I wanted this moment to be perfect. The moment where I would finally come back to talk to you, and ask for forgiveness. Because I have never regretted anything so much in my life than breaking up with you all those months ago. I really am sorry, Ally."

He finally stops, and she can feel his gaze on her as he waits expectantly for an answer. But she has no idea what to tell him anymore. She knows what he wants to hear, she's sure of that, but she's not sure she can give it to him anymore.

Slowly, she looks up to meet his gaze.

"I do forgive you, Austin," she says. "I think I forgave you a long time ago. I always blamed myself for the breakup, anyway. But if you came here looking for forgiveness, I can give you that." She pauses to take a deep breath. "But I have a feeling that's not the only reason you came back. Is it?"

He sighs, then shakes his head. "No. It's not," he says. "I'm glad that you forgave me, Ally, but the real reason I came here was to ask you something else. Something a lot bigger. I – I know it's been like six months and we've barely even said two words to each other in all that time and I'm sure you're well on your way to moving on, but I just can't get over the fact that I don't think our story is over yet. I miss you, Ally, and...I'm still in love with you." He pauses. "Do you still feel the same way about me?"

She gapes at him, then looks away. She's dreamed of him coming back and saying these words to her hundreds of times, but not once did she think it would ever actually happen. And once she realized the truth, that she was no longer in love with him, she thought saying no to him would be easier now. But the moment's here, and it's real, and she has no idea what to tell him.

She sighs. "Is it alright if I think about this for a while? It's just...it's a lot to take in, that's all," she says.

He nods. "Okay," he says. "Okay. I understand. I can wait."

She smiles a little, but stays looking down as he stands up from the couch and slowly makes his way over to the front door.

"I guess I'll just be leaving, then," he says. "It was nice to see you again, Ally."

She nods. "You, too," she says quietly.

He hesitates by the door, quiet, before finally opening it and shutting it behind him. She doesn't move once he's gone, unsure of how to do anything at the moment. She feels something wet slide down her cheek and lifts her hand to feel tears present. She doesn't bother wiping them away.

It's been three weeks since she finally began to move on from him, but he came back to her, and she can't help but think that she just took ten giant steps back again.

* * *

 **\- Yaiii: Guess you'll just have to wait and see what happens... But I'm glad to know you're excited! I'm excited, too, haha. :)**

 **\- axswiftxa13: I know you didn't ask a question, but I'm honestly really curious to know how you think I'm gonna twist the last code of this (whatever it is won't mess up the ending since it's already written, or you could always wait to tell me after it's completed...or maybe not at all, idk, haha. That's up to you).**

 **\- CrackFicGirl: OKAY I KNOW YOU DIDN'T ASK A QUESTION TOO BUT I JUST WANTED TO SAY I THINK IT'S REALLY COOL THAT YOU'RE GONNA SEE TAYLOR SOON AND MEET HER TOO? THAT IS SO AWESOME. IM EXCITED FOR YOU.**

 **I hope I didn't disappoint too many of you when Austin finally came back but Ally didn't answer his question (yet). You will just have to wait and see what becomes of them in the next couple chapters. Now that I think about it, there aren't too many left.**

 **Anyways. Thanks for reading! Tell me what you thought in the reviews? :)**


	11. This Love

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: It's already September and we're already on to chapter eleven. Wow. Everything is going by so quickly now. But anyways.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

This Love:  
 _"Timing is a funny thing."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

"...and now he wants to get back together with me," Ally finishes an hour later. Trish and Cassidy came back only a few minutes after Austin had left to find Ally crying silently on the couch, and immediately asked to know what happened. It took a while, but she managed to get through the whole story and calm down at the same time as her friends listened patiently. Now, they sit on either side of her, quiet, Cassidy wearing an expression of sorrow and Trish an expression of anger.

"You've been doing so well for the past few weeks and _now_ he comes back?" Trish practically shouts, breaking the silence. She stands.

"Trish," Cassidy mutters. "Calm down. Ally's upset."

"Yeah, I know that, but it's because of that _jerk_ that she is in the first place! So, no, I will not calm down. Not when he hurt my best friend," she replies.

"He didn't _hurt_ me, Trish," Ally says. "He just..." She trails off.

"He reopened a wound in you that you've been doing so well to keep closed," Trish retorts. "He hurt you. Again."

Ally sighs, not bothering to argue with her. Laying her head in her hands, she says, "I just don't know what to do. What am I supposed to tell him? I said I'd think about it, but I can hardly form any decent thoughts ever since he left. I'm stuck."

"Tell him you're done and to screw off," Trish suggests unkindly.

This time, it's both Ally and Cassidy that say, "Trish!" who just looks at them like she doesn't understand what their problem is.

Cassidy says, "Maybe you could tell him that you want to be friends? For the time being, at least."

"But I don't want to lead him on or give him any false hope," Ally replies. "I want him to know the truth, but I don't know what the truth is anymore."

"Well, are you still in love with him? You told _us_ you weren't, so tell him that," Cassidy suggests.

Ally takes a deep breath. "I _wasn't_ in love with him anymore, no. But when I saw him again and he said the things he did, I...I'm not so sure that's true anymore," she admits.

Now her friends exchange a glance, like they're conveying secrets in front of her without letting her in on them.

"What are you guys thinking?" Ally asks.

They face her again, forgetting she was in the room with them, too. Cassidy breaks the silence first.

"It's just...you've been doing so well these past few weeks."

"But we also know that you're still not completely over him," Trish adds.

"And we were just thinking..."

"It's just an idea, it might not be true."

"That maybe seeing him again brought back all your feelings for who you guys used to be. That you're in love with the _idea_ of you two, but not necessarily Austin himself," Cassidy finishes. Trish nods in agreement.

They stay quiet, and Ally thinks over this for a minute. Is it possible that she just misses who they used to be, and not Austin? She was in love with him once, and now the person she thinks she loves is really just a memory? It would make sense, but it would also complicate a lot of things. Because if that really is the truth, and she really isn't in love with him anymore, then how is she supposed to tell him that they can't get back together without hurting him all over again?

She looks up at her two best friends and, meeting their gazes, she knows they understand exactly what she wants to tell them.

* * *

A week later, she stands outside the infamous coffee shop from so long ago, waiting. He agreed to meet her here for lunch, but she decided to leave a little early, wanting to have a chance to gather her thoughts before having to face him again.

It's not easy knowing you're about to tell your ex-boyfriend – who still happens to be in love with you – that, though you want to fix things, you don't want to get back together with him.

Five minutes before they agreed to meet, she sees him down the street before he sees her, and raises her hand a little to catch his attention. He smiles when he sees her, then picks up his speed and reaches her in front of the doors.

"Shall we go in?" he asks her. She nods, then lets him open the door for her and steps inside, walking to the back corner of the shop to find a seat and sits down. He gets in line to order their coffees, giving her a chance to watch him closely without worrying so much that he might see her.

He's changed a lot in the last six months since they'd been apart. He's a little taller, despite the fact he's now twenty-years-old and should've stopped growing a long time ago. His hair is also a bit longer, too, like he hasn't bothered to get it cut while he was in LA. Surprisingly, it doesn't bother her, though she misses the way it used to look.

The biggest change, she notices, is in his eyes. While she sees him with a smile often, it never quite reaches his eyes anymore, and they don't shine like they used to. Whenever she met his gaze when he spoke to her last week, he looked hollow, like something has been taken from him and he can't figure out how to get it back. She can't help but think she's the one that caused this look, and she's afraid of what might happen to him after their conversation today. But then he's paying for their drinks and walking over to their table, and so she drops the thought and takes her coffee quietly, letting silence fall between them as he sits down.

"So," Austin finally says, breaking the silence, "what did you want to talk about?"

She taps her coffee cup in thought. She doesn't know how to start this. It feels like she's breaking up with him all over again, yet she wasn't the one that did so in the first place and they're not even together now.

"Um. So, I thought about what you said," she starts. "About me and...us."

He nods. "That's good, that you thought about it. I was afraid you might just drop the whole thing."

She ignores this comment and continues, "The thing is...I don't know how to say this."

Now he looks worried. "Say what?" he asks slowly.

She sighs. "I agree with what you told me, for the most part," she replies. "I miss you, too, and I wouldn't mind fixing things between us." She pauses.

When it looks to Austin as though she won't continue, he says, "Go on."

She sighs again. "I want to fix things," she repeats, "but I'd rather do so as...as friends."

"Oh," he mutters. He pauses, mulling over her confession, his expression unreadable.

When he finally does speak again, it's to say, "So, you wanna be friends."

She nods. "Yeah," she replies quietly.

" _Just_ friends."

"Yeah."

Silence. Then, "Okay."

She looks up. "You're okay with that?"

He shrugs. "It beats not having you in my life at all, I guess. I was just hoping you felt the same way. But I'll be fine."

She smiles a little. "You will. I know you will."

He returns the smile. "Thanks. I hope so."

After a moment, he asks, "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why just friends?"

She sighs. She figured he'd ask this.

"Because, Austin. I'm not ready to jump into another relationship again, much less with the person I thought I was over. I wanted to move on from you, and I have been. I'm not saying I don't still care about you, but I'm not saying I'm still in love with you, either." She pauses. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm in a place in my life right now where having a boyfriend would just complicate things. So... I'm sorry."

He nods. "No, I get it," he says.

"Plus, your timing sucks," she adds.

He looks up quickly at her tone, and actually laughs. "What?" he asks.

"Your first album comes out next month? You go on tour in the fall? Trying to juggle a career while in a new relationship is not easy, trust me on that," she explains.

He chuckles at her comment, causing her to laugh, and then they're both laughing loudly, not caring about the fact that they're two rising pop stars in the middle of a busy coffee shop in New York City. It makes her happy knowing that she can share a laugh with someone she thought she had lost forever, and she doesn't want to stop. Maybe things will get better from here. Maybe they can be better. This love may have came back to her for something more, but right now, in this moment, she thinks maybe they'll both be alright. She only hopes they can be, together.

* * *

 **\- axswiftxa13: I feel like I totally just tore down your theory and for that I'm sorry :(. But I did think it was really interesting! Especially with the lyrics; I never thought about that.**  
 **Also, don't worry about the last chapter! I've twisted the code in a way that I'm sure everyone will be happy with (at least, I hope everyone will be happy with it. I really like it, but then again I wrote it, so...we'll see).**

 **Not quite the happiest of endings for this chapter, and I realize it's short, but don't worry. I'm sure the next chapter will make up for both of those things.**

 **Thanks for reading! Tell me your thoughts in the reviews? :)**


	12. I Know Places

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: Ah, we're finally on chapter twelve! Kind of a late update (it's 10PM where I am), but I don't care. This is definitely my favourite chapter (or maybe the last one? I don't know), so I'm really excited for you guys to read it.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally, _1989_ by Taylor Swift, or "Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran.**

* * *

I Know Places:  
 _"And everyone was watching."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

Things manage to go back to normal between Austin & Ally almost right away – well, with some minor changes.

They're not dating, and though she knows Austin's okay with this, sometimes he likes to push the boundaries of just how good of friends they are. She knows he's just doing it to bug her, but she has to admit that at times she wonders if there's more to it than just a seemingly harmless joke.

The first time he does this is when they go see a movie together a few days after their talk. It's just the two of them, Cassidy being busy with work and Trish not being interested, but she assumes Austin knows they're not on a date. They're not. They're just two good friends going to see a movie together. She figures it's obvious.

But about halfway through the movie, she's thrown off when she hears Austin dramatically yawn next to her and throw his arm over her shoulder. She pulls away as his arm falls behind her, laughing.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asks him.

"Getting comfortable. What are you doing?" he replies.

She moves him arm back to his side. "Trying to keep things on a friendly level – not that friendly," she adds when he smirks at her. He just laughs, but doesn't try this move again.

The next time he pulls a joke, they're walking through Central Park when he spots something ahead and grabs her hand to drag her along – and then doesn't let go when they reach the destination.

"Austin, what are we supposed to be looking at?" she asks, attempting to tug her hand out of his grip at the same time. He acts as though he doesn't notice her doing this, only tightening his grip and continuing to point at something in the pond he pulled her towards.

"You don't see it?" he asks. When she shakes her head, he leans down to her level, his face right next to hers, then points again. "Right there, in the middle of the pond."

She continues looking, searching for whatever mysterious exciting object he seems to have spotted, but comes up with nothing.

She shakes her head. "I don't see anything. But what are you even talking about, Austin? That might make a difference."

He stands up straight and watches the pond for another minute, then sighs. "Never mind," he mutters. "It's nothing." Then he lets go of her hand and sticks both of his in his pockets, continuing along the trail by the pond. Slowly, she follows, wondering if there was anything there at all in the first place.

The third time he pulls this stunt, she knows something is up.

It's just the two of them in her apartment, talking about Austin's album coming out in a couple weeks when he suddenly stops in the middle of a sentence.

She looks at him confused. "Austin?" she says.

Ignoring her, he stands up and grabs the TV remote off the coffee table and turns up the volume, and she realizes what song is playing: "Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran. Then Austin turns to her and holds his hand out.

"Get up," he says.

She laughs a little. "Why?" she asks.

"Because. I like this song and I wanna dance to it with you," he explains. "Now get up. Dance with me, Ally."

She shakes her head, then takes his hand and lets him pull her onto her feet. "Alright. Let's dance," she says. And so they do.

It's not the first time they've danced in the middle of her living room for no particular reason, but she tries not to think about why he decided to bring this back as they sway slowly around, one hand in his and the other on his shoulder, his hand resting on her waist. The song plays loudly in the background.

 _And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways  
Maybe just the touch of a hand  
Well, me – I fall in love with you every single day  
And I just wanna tell you I am_

"So," Austin says, "we've talked about my album a few times. How's yours coming along?"

Ally just shrugs. "It's coming. I'm still working on a few songs, but I'm hoping to have it done by the end of the summer."

He nods. "That's good." He pauses. "So, uh, how many songs are about me?"

She tries to hide her smile, but when she looks up and meets his gaze, she laughs.

"What?" he asks, laughing too.

She shakes her head. "Nothing," she mutters. "I just...didn't expect you to ask that, I guess."

"Oh, come on, Ally," he replies. "It's me we're dealing with here! Of course I asked. I'm curious."

"Oh, you're _curious_ , is that it?"

"Well, yeah! I mean, you're the first girl I've ever dated that is a musician; you have to have written _something_ about me," he says.

"Was."

"What?"

"I _was_ the first girl you've dated that's a musician," she explains. "I'm not...I'm not your girlfriend anymore. Remember?"

He opens his mouth to respond, then closes it. After a moment, he mutters, "Right."

 _Cause, honey, your soul could never grow old, it's evergreen  
And, baby, your smile's forever in my mind and memory  
And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways  
And maybe it's all part of a plan  
Well, I'll just keep on making the same mistakes  
Hoping that you'll understand_

 _That, baby, now  
Take me into your loving arms  
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars  
Place your hand on my beating heart  
I'm thinking out loud  
Maybe we found love right where we are, oh_

When the guitar solo begins, Austin moves his hand from her waist to takes hers, steps away from her, then spins her around and pulls her to him again. She laughs as they start swaying more, fast at first, then slowing down to the way they were before. She rests her head on his chest and closes her eyes, focusing on the sound of his breathing as they dance.

 _So, baby, now  
Take me into your loving arms  
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars  
Oh, darling, place your hand on my beating heart  
I'm thinking out loud  
That maybe we found love right where we are  
Oh, maybe we found love right where we are  
And we found love right where we are_

As the song comes to an end, Ally leans back, then looks up at Austin, who's looking down at her. She keeps a hold on his gaze, watching as it flickers ever so slightly to her lips. He begins to lean down, slowly, and she can feel herself leaning up to meet him in the middle. Her eyes start to close, and his breath is on her lips and they're just about to kiss when her front door opens and they're forced to jump apart as Trish and Cassidy walk in.

"I've got it! I've finally got it!" Trish shouts, waving something around in her hand.

"Got – got what?" Ally asks, still in a daze from what just happened – or, almost happened.

"My exam results," Trish states. "You know, the ones that will determine whether or not there's any point in me continuing business school? I've only been talking about them for weeks."

Cassidy looks at Trish. "No, you haven't been _talking_ about them, Trish, just complain about how useless they are. And I'm pretty sure you only started thinking about them two days ago."

"Same thing," Trish replies, waving away her comment. Cassidy goes to respond, but by now Ally has stopped paying attention and looks at Austin, who's looking at the floor in front of him, and she wonders if he's thinking the same thing as her:

What just happened?

* * *

Things start to get difficult when the first article is released to the public that Austin Moon and Ally Dawson are back together.

She doesn't see it herself. Trish tells her about it one morning over breakfast as she's on her phone. When she finds it, she reads some of it out loud for Ally to hear.

"Famous singer Ally Dawson and up-and-coming artist Austin Moon were spotted together in Central Park last week. Possibly on a date? Fans think so. The duo was spotted laughing and having a good time, even holding hands at one point. Has this famous couple finally rekindled their flame again?" she finishes.

Ally groans. "This is ridiculous," she complains. "Why do they have to follow me everywhere?"

"Because you're a famous pop star," Trish states. "Not to mention, Austin's getting pretty famous, too, with his album coming out soon. The media's gonna be all over him, and I'm sure they would just love to see the two of you back together. You know how fans can get."

Ally nods, knowing exactly what she's talking about. She loves her fans, but they certainly like to try and pry into her personal life a lot. On the one hand, she appreciates the dedication, but on the other hand, she keeps certain things about her life private for a reason. Her relationships are one of them.

She never really voiced to the public about her relationship with Austin when they first dated. She knew he was okay with the attention she was getting, and he never did complain about it, but she didn't think she really had to say anything. It wasn't until she was in an interview while on tour and she responded to a question about how her boyfriend was doing while they were apart that she realized she'd confirmed them. But she let it go, knowing that it was obvious they were together in the first place.

When he came back to New York, she wasn't surprised when the media suspected that his reasoning behind doing so was to try and fix things between the two of them (somehow, word had gotten out that they'd broken up, and it wasn't good). After a few weeks, it became obvious he wasn't back in town for her, and so things died down, at least about them.

But now it's starting up again, and as much as she wants to ignore it, she also wants to establish the fact that they're just friends now. One part of the article stuck out to her after Trish read it, and it leads her to confronting Austin about it at his apartment a few hours later.

"Did you see this?" she asks him when he opens his door.

"Well, hello to you, too," he says, ignoring the article she has displayed on her phone. He opens his door to let her in, and she walks past him and into the living room, not stopping until she's standing in front of his couch.

Austin's apartment is about the same size of hers, but you wouldn't be able to tell this from the way it looks. The front door opens right into the living room/music room, complete with a TV, coffee table, and couch, as well as a piano in the back corner and a couple guitars. The room is only separated from the kitchen by a counter, and past that is the hallway to the bedroom and bathroom. She once asked him why he got such a small place when he could've bought something much nicer, but with him living alone, he figured he didn't need a huge house.

Now, Austin follows her to the couch, standing in front of her with a confused expression on his face.

"What are you freaking out about?" he asks.

"This!" she says, shoving her phone in his face. He takes it from her and reads the article, mouthing the words to himself as he does. When he finishes, he hands her back her phone.

"Well?" she asks.

"Well, what? I don't see the problem," he replies.

"Didn't you read the article?" she says. "People think we're together again!"

"So?"

"So?" she repeats. " _So_ , we're not. I don't like people thinking something that isn't true. We need to fix this."

Austin steps around her and heads into the kitchen. She follows him.

"And how do you plan to that?" he asks as he reaches the fridge, opening it to look for something to drink.

"Well, for starters, you might want to reconsider the way you've been acting around me since we started hanging out again," she suggests.

He stops in his search. Closing the fridge door, he turns around, a confused yet angry expression on his face.

"The way I've been _acting_ around you?" he repeats. "What are you talking about?"

"Wha –? What am I talking about?" she says, suddenly angry, too. "You really think I haven't noticed? You think I don't see what you're doing?"

"What am I –"

"Putting your arm around me at the movies? Holding my hand in Central Park? The freaking dance in my living room?" she explains. "Those aren't things friends do, Austin! I know you might think there's exceptions for us because of our past, but there isn't! You can't just do those things if you want us to be friends!"

Austin gapes at Ally, stuck between shock at what she said and wanting to shout back. He closes his mouth, groaning.

Unable to meet her gaze, he mutters, "You really think I don't know that? You think I haven't realized the difference?" He pauses. "Well, have you ever stopped to think about how hard this is for me? I don't wanna be your friend, Ally! I never did! You know that I think this 'just friends' business between us is ridiculous!"

Now it's her turn to be shocked.

"What? You told me you were okay with it!"

"I lied! Okay? I'm not okay just being your friend!" he says. "You know how I feel about you, Ally! You know I'm still in love with you!"

"Well, if you weren't okay with it, then why did you agree to be friends?" she shouts.

"Because I thought –!" He stops.

"You thought what?" she asks. When he doesn't respond, she gasps. "You thought you could get me to fall in love with you again, didn't you? You thought that maybe if we hung out enough, I'd realize that I still wanna be with you. Didn't you?"

He sighs. After a moment, he says, "Okay, yes, maybe I did think that. But I can't apologize for the way I feel, Ally. I wanna be with you, but I can't afford to lose you again. If being friends with you is the only way I can still be a part of your life, then fine, I'll suck it up. But just know that it hasn't been easy for me. Okay?" He pauses. "Look, I'm sorry for getting mad, and I'm sorry that everyone thinks we're together when we're not. But I'm not sorry for how I feel about you."

She looks down, sighing. She was afraid of this. The first couple times he did something out of line, she shook it off, thinking he was just goofing around, but after they almost kissed after that dance, she knew something was up. She didn't realize how much this was affecting him, too.

"I'm sorry, too," she finally says. "About shouting. I didn't mean to start a fight, I just...I guess I just thought you might have gotten over me by now. I guess I was wrong."

Shockingly, Austin laughs, causing her to look up.

"What's so funny?" she asks.

He shakes his head. "Nothing, it's just..." He pauses. "Me getting over you. It's almost comical."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

She hesitates before asking, "Why?"

"Why is that funny?" She nods. "Because I don't think I'll ever stop loving you, Ally. I don't think I'll ever be able to get over you."

She lets out a deep breath. "Oh."

"Yeah."

Awkward silence falls between them. After a minute, she clears her throat.

"I, uh, guess I should head back home now," she says. "I have to be at the studio soon."

He nods. "Right."

"But I'll see you later?"

He manages a smile, but it still looks sad to her. "Sure. Later."

She makes an effort to smile back before walking away, but as she closes the door to his apartment and walks down the hallway, she can't stop herself from worrying about how much more things might change between them now that she knows the truth. Because he's still in love with her, and he's never going to stop. And she's not sure she ever wants him to.

* * *

Surprisingly, things go back to normal between Austin & Ally almost right away. Again.

A few days later, the two of them, along with Trish and Cassidy, are hanging out at a bowling alley as Austin's idea of a sort of pre-party for the release of his album next week, knowing how serious things are about to get and wanting to do something fun before he can't.

"It's going...it's going...and she misses!" Austin commentates from their table as Ally throws yet another gutter ball.

She turns around and glares at him. "You try bowling after not having played in nearly three years."

"Has it really been three years?" Trish asks. Ally nods in response.

Austin just laughs.

"Sweetheart, I haven't properly gone bowling since senior year," he replies. Looking at the screen above them, he says, "And, according to my scores, I seem to be doing just fine."

Glaring again, Ally says, "First of all, don't call me sweetheart. And second, why don't you come up here and show me how it's done if you think it's so easy?"

"If you insist," Austin says. Getting up, he walks over to where the bowling balls are and grabs one, then stands next to Ally in front of the lane.

"Okay, watch me closely," he says. "You hold it with three fingers, walk towards the lane quickly, and once you reach the edge, let go of the ball, but you don't throw it up, it's more like you let it slide out of your hand and down the lane with a slight shove. Does that make sense?"

Ally starts nodding, then shakes her head. "Not really. But I'll try."

He laughs, then hands her the ball. "You can do it. I believe in you."

She smiles as she takes the ball from him, watching him as his goes back to his seat. He gives her a thumbs-up from his spot. Turning back around, she lets out a deep breath, then goes.

"Aaand...gutter ball," Austin says.

Ally groans. "Why can't I get this? It's _bowling_ , everyone can bowl," she complains as she walks back to the table and sits down. Cassidy gives her a sympathetic smile as she gets up to take her turn.

"Hey, not everyone can bowl," Austin says. "And besides, it just takes time to learn – or, relearn, in your case."

"Whatever," she mutters. "Face it. I suck at bowling." Folding her arms on the table, she lays down and rests her head against them.

Austin copies her actions, looking at her from over his arms. "You do suck at bowling," he replies. She looks up to glare at him, but he continues, "But only for now. I can still help you on your next turn."

She sighs. " _Fine_ ," she replies. "But you're wasting your time. I'm a hopeless case."

He chuckles. "You're not hopeless," he replies. He sits up. "There's always hope."

She just smiles at him, but stays resting on the table. She doesn't move from this position until Austin goes after Trish, if only to see how he's able to play so well. He only hits three of the pins on his first shot, but somehow manages to his the rest on his next, earning him a spare.

"That's all there is to it," he says, coming back to the table. "See?"

"You make it look so easy," she says. "It's not fair." But she stands and walks up to the lane, grabbing a ball along the way.

"You remember what I told you?" he asks.

"A little," she replies.

He sighs. "Okay. Just hold it in your hand like so..." He takes the ball and positions it properly in her hand. "Then walk up and toss it _onto_ the lane. Don't toss it up."

She nods. "Okay. I think I can do this."

He smiles. "You've got this," he replies.

She smiles back, then faces the lane. She starts walking slowly, then picks up the pace, stopping once she reaches the edge. She tosses the ball, watching as it rolls down the middle of the lane. It stays straight until about halfway up, before slowly curving to the right, then hitting the gutter – but not before knocking down one of the pins close to it.

She gasps. "I got one! Finally!" she shouts.

Austin laughs. "You did it! Sort of."

She smacks him in the chest. "Whatever. It was still something."

He nods. "It was." Pointing towards the lane, he says, "Did you want help with the next one or are you good?"

She thinks about this for a moment before saying, "No, I still want a little help. I got one, but that's not much."

"Alright," he says. She follows him as he grabs another ball, handing it to her. He's about to repeat his instructions when he says, "We're gonna try something different this time."

"Different?"

He nods, then leads her towards the lane again, standing next to her. He fixes the way she's holding the ball again, then stands behind her, placing one hand on hers holding the ball, the other on her left arm.

"Okay, just walk straight and I'll lead you through it," he says. She nods in understanding, but she has trouble focusing on the words he's saying with how close he's standing to her. But then he's nudging her forward and she's walking towards the lane and they're throwing the ball together and his hand is still on her as they watch it roll down the lane and knock down five more pins.

"Yes!" they shout together.

She turns around. "I did it! I mean, we did it! I mean, kind of, I – I don't know what I mean," she says with a laugh.

He laughs, too. "I know what you mean," he says. "And you're welcome."

"Thank you," she says, then throws her arms around him in a hug. He waits a second before falling into it, pulling her closer to him. When she pulls back, she tries to ignore the look in his eyes, and walks back towards their table as Cassidy gets up for her turn.

Maybe things aren't quite as normal as they used to be.

* * *

The minute she steps inside her apartment that night, she's ambushed by Cassidy and Trish.

"Sit," they say to her in the kitchen.

She looks at them confused, but does what she's told. "Okay. Why am I sitting?"

Her friends share a look, then sit down next to her.

"Has, uh, has anything changed between you and Austin lately?" Cassidy asks.

"Like what?" Ally replies slowly.

"Like, relationship defining?" Trish says.

Ally shrugs. "Not really. Unless you count that article about us. Why?"

"Did you show him the article after I showed you?" Trish asks. "You seemed pretty stressed out when you came back from his place that day."

Ally sighs. "I did," she says. "And, uh, let's just say I was more bothered by it than he was."

"How so?" Cassidy asks.

"Well, I showed it to him when I got there," she starts, "and he wasn't at all bothered by it. But then we got into a fight about why, and...turns out he's not as okay with being friends as I thought. He's still in love with me."

Cassidy and Trish share another look, and this time Ally groans out loud.

"Will you guys stop doing that? It makes me feel like you know a lot more than I do, and you're not letting me in on it," she says.

They face her again. "Sorry," Cassidy says. "It's just...we already knew Austin was still in love with you."

"How? Did he tell you?"

"Have you seen the guy?" Trish replies. "It's obvious. Just from the way he looks at you. It's sad, really. I feel like I'm looking at a kicked puppy whenever I see him with you. He's still hurting."

"I... Oh. I didn't realize that," Ally admits.

"Yeah, well, that's besides the point," Trish says. "We actually wanted to ask you something else."

"And what was that?"

This time it's Cassidy that speaks. "Now don't get offended, but...are you, by any chance, still in love with him, too?"

Ally gapes at them. "What? No. What would make you think that?"

"The way you were acting today at the bowling alley. How he helped you, and the way you kept looking at him," Cassidy explains. "You just seem like you're falling in love with him all over again."

"I – Well, I'm not, I can assure you that," Ally says. "I care about Austin, but I'm not in love with him. Not anymore."

"You don't have to get all defensive," Trish says. "We were just wondering."

"I know. I'm just making sure you do, too," Ally replies. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to bed." And she gets up and walks into her room without waiting for a response.

But that night she has trouble sleeping. She's sure her friends were just looking out for her, making sure she doesn't make the same mistake again, but could they be right? Could she be falling in love with Austin all over again?

She shakes her head. She's not. She's not in love with him. She can't be.

Her last thoughts are of how hard she's trying to convince herself of this when she finally falls asleep.

* * *

A week later, Austin's album is finally released to the public. But instead of celebrating out with the rest of the world, the two of them are spending the evening at his apartment alone.

"So, why didn't you want to go to that party again?" Ally asks as she leans against the kitchen counter. Austin finishes up with the coffee he was making and walks over to her, handing her a mug.

He shrugs, taking a sip of his own cup of coffee. Putting it down, he says, "I don't know. I'm not really big on parties. Especially Jimmy's. Plus, I think he was hoping to reel me in to going back to LA tonight to go to _more_ parties, and I'm not ready for that." He pauses. "I'm just gonna worry about the interviews I have to begin tomorrow. No parties. Not yet."

Ally nods. "That makes sense. I know the album release party I had was kinda crazy, but even then I didn't stay for long."

"Yeah, I remember that," Austin replies. "Didn't you call me up afterwards to go to the movies?"

Ally laughs. "Yeah. What did we see again?"

Austin shrugs. "Couldn't tell you. We just sat in the back of a half-empty theatre and spent most of the time making out," he says casually.

Ally looks down at her coffee. "Right," she mutters. "I forgot we did that." She places it on the counter beside her. "We were like two crazy teenagers in love."

"We _were_ two crazy teenagers in love," Austin says. "That's why we did it."

Ally just nods again. "I guess so."

Austin, not noticing Ally's change of tone, continues, "We did a lot of crazy things together, didn't we? Made out in the back of theatres, chased each other around Central Park with water guns, somehow managed to get into Times Square on New Years Eve – though, not to perform, unfortunately, but you have done that before." He pauses. "We had a lot of fun together, didn't we?"

Slowly, she looks up at him to meet his gaze, and smiles. "We did," she agrees.

He smiles back at her, almost nervous. Suddenly, she feels nervous, too, though for what, she doesn't know. Then something changes in the way he's looking at her, and his smile begins to fade as his gaze flickers, and she doesn't have a chance to think through what's about to happen when his eyes shut and then his lips are on hers in a hard kiss.

She gasps inwardly at the impact of it, leaning even more into the counter behind her as it happens. But then she feels herself kissing him back with the same desperation, having not kissed him in so long. Her hands reach up to his neck, her fingers tugging at his hair, and his arms go around her waist, pulling her close. She slowly opens her mouth, letting the kiss go further. Kissing her deeply, he tightens his grip around her waist and picks her up, so she's sitting on the counter. She wraps her legs around his waist, wanting to be close to him, and all she can feel in his tongue in her mouth and her hands in his hair and her mind in clouding over and she doesn't want it to end. It's not until she feels his hands slide under her shirt that she's able to let out a breathy, "Stop."

He pulls back a little, but she can still feel his lips touching hers as he says, "What?"

She opens her eyes and leans back. "Stop. We need to stop."

He laughs a little, clearly still intoxicated from their kissing. "Why? We were having so much fun."

This time, she shoves him away, causing him to stumble. She jumps down from the counter and walks over to the front door. She hears him follow her into the room, but doesn't look up until he speaks again.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"Home," she says, looking around. "God, where did I leave my bag?"

"It's on the table," he says, and then she spots it where he said it was and picks it up, walking past him and towards the door.

"Wait, Ally!"

She turns around, angry, but she's not sure with whom she's mad at. "What?" she shouts.

"I – I'm sorry," he says. "I didn't mean –"

"I know you didn't," she replies, and she means it, but before he can say another word, she opens the door and walks out, slamming it shut behind her. She doesn't stop moving until she's back in her own apartment, laying in her own bed, and utterly confused.

Because she's been doing so well. She was so sure she was over him. And then this happens. One wrong move and they're making out on the kitchen counter and she's not sure what she regrets more – letting it happen in the first place or not letting it continue.

And that's when she knows the truth. The truth that she was never over Austin. Only a fool would think that. And only a fool would let themselves continue to believe in a lie.

She was never truly over Austin. She was always in love with him. She's still in love with him. Maybe it's time she finally did something about that.

* * *

 **Well, that was quite the ending, huh? I had a lot of fun writing this one. I hope you guys had just as much fun reading it. Thanks for that, by the way. If you've been following the story up until now, I think that's awesome. Tell me what you thought in the reviews? Thanks! :)**


	13. Clean, Part 1

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: So. Chapter thirteen. The final song – I say song and not chapter because there is one more! Trust me, there is at least one chapter left. And you're definitely gonna want it after you read this. Have fun.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Clean:  
 _"She lost him but found herself..."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

Ally wakes up the next morning in a daze, confused about whether or not last night's events really did happen. But when she checks her phone and finds a number of texts and missed calls from Austin, all explaining how sorry he is, she knows it wasn't a dream. It really did happen.

And she really is still in love with him.

She sits up and rests her head in her hands, taking a deep breath. _How_ could she have let this happen? Other than their argument, they've been fine since they became friends again. At least, she's been fine. She now knows Austin's had some trouble coping with being just friends these past couple months. And yesterday, talking about their past, must've been the last straw for him. Thinking back, she could see in his eyes from how hard he was resisting to kiss her, but he couldn't do it anymore. And when he finally did it, she felt as if she'd just received something she'd been missing all her life. She wanted to kiss him, too; she just didn't know until it actually happened. But now that it has, was it really worth it? For either of them? Based on how much he keeps apologizing, he's clearly afraid that he might've lost her forever. As for her, everything's changed again, and she doesn't know what to do anymore.

Five minutes later, she gets up and gets dressed. She hopes she's able to avoid Trish this morning, knowing how late she likes to sleep in, but when she walks out of her room, she's already up, making breakfast in the kitchen.

"Hey," Trish says without turning around. She searches through Ally's small selection of cereal in the cupboard before finally settling on one and pulling it down.

Ally smiles at her friend even though she can't see her, then makes her way over to the fridge and pulls out the milk, placing it on the counter next to Trish. As she grabs her own bowl and a different box of cereal, Trish speaks up again.

"So, what happened to you yesterday? You came back from Austin's pretty early, but when I went to talk to you, you were already asleep," she says.

Ally sighs, then shrugs. "Just...tired, I guess."

Trish just says, "Oh." They're both quiet for another minute as they put away their cereal and walk over to the table to sit down. Trish continues, "I just thought maybe something happened between you two again. I didn't get home until midnight, but even then you're usually still up. And Austin wouldn't tell me anything," she adds quietly.

Ally stops in her actions, her spoon halfway to her mouth. "Austin wouldn't tell you what?" she asks slowly.

"What happened," Trish replies. "I texted him before I came home to see if maybe you were still at his place, but he told me you left a few hours ago. When I asked why, he never responded. I just figured maybe, you know, something went down between you two. Maybe you got into another fight."

Ally shakes her head. "No. We didn't fight." She pauses. "But what does it matter, anyway? In fact, why were you even asking him about me in the first place? You could easily have just texted me to see where I was."

"Okay, first of all, you don't need to get so defensive with me," Trish says. "I wasn't accusing you of anything. Second, I texted him because you weren't replying to me. And third, you know why it matters."

"No, I don't," Ally says a little too quickly.

"Yes, you do," Trish retorts. "You know I'm just looking out for you. I want you to be careful around him. I just...I don't want you to get hurt again."

"I'm not gonna get hurt by some argument with Austin," she says.

"That's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?"

Trish sighs. "I mean, I don't just wanna stand by and watch you fall in love with him again, only to get your heart broken. _Again_ ," she explains.

Ally looks down at her cereal, unable to respond. She's gonna have to tell her the truth eventually. Why not now?

Taking a deep breath, she says, "Well, you're a little too late there."

Now Trish is shocked. "What? What do you mean?"

"I..." she starts. She pauses to gather her thoughts before speaking again. "The truth is, there is a reason I left Austin's early, and it wasn't because I was tired. It was because...he kissed me." She ignores Trish's look when she says this. "We were just talking, but it was about us, how we were before we broke up, and I don't know if it was the way I looked at him or if he just couldn't take it any longer, but the next thing I knew we were kissing and I didn't want to stop. Of course, we did, and then I came straight home and I was freaking out inside so much because I realized that I'm not over him, Trish. I never was. You and Cassidy were right. I still love Austin. I'm still in love with him."

They're both silent when she finishes, Ally waiting for Trish to respond, yet Trish having no idea what to say.

Finally, she sighs.

"Ally..."

"I know."

"How?"

"I don't know."

Trish pauses. "You would've found out eventually."

Ally nods. "I guess so."

"Does he know?"

"How I feel?" Trish nods. "No. And, honestly, I'm not sure I want him to."

"Why not?"

"Because, Trish. He's gonna be super busy with his album being out up until he starts his tour – which is in a month, by the way," she explains. "I – I know he feels the same way, but I just don't think I wanna get into this all over again. Yes, I love him, but I have to let him go. Don't I?"

This time, Trish doesn't respond. She eats another spoonful of her cereal, but she's looking at Ally as she does so with an expression that says Ally should know exactly what she's supposed to do. And as much as she hates it, she's afraid there's only one right answer.

* * *

Unfortunately, Trish has to leave for Wisconsin to start school again the next week (something they're both dreading, which is surprising for Ally, but she has a lot going on right now), so she's left alone to deal with her realization. But she doesn't have to try too hard to avoid Austin for the next couple weeks. He's too busy with promoting his album to hang out, and whenever he has any free time she's either at school or the studio. She knows he wants to talk to her again, hoping he can apologize enough times for what he did in hopes that she'll forgive him and they can move past this bump in the road as better friends. But she's afraid to confront him again, unsure of what to tell him when she does.

She loves him, yes, but she hasn't forgotten the pain she felt when they broke up. She's not sure she wants to put herself in that position again. To give him that kind of power over her, to be able to hurt her like that again, it scares her. She doesn't like heartbreak (who does?), and she never wants to feel that again.

But now their friendship is on the line. She thinks she understands when Austin told her how hard it was being just friends with her when he's still in love with her. Every time she thinks about possibly seeing him again, she freezes inside. Part of her wants to run the other way when he's around, but another part of her wants to hold him close and never let go. She's not sure which idea bothers her more.

She's just so confused about him right now. She doesn't want to let him go. But it's clear this friendship isn't working out well for either of them, especially now that she knows how she feels. She doesn't want to push him away, but she has no choice anymore. She has to let him go. She has to move on from Austin.

If only she could just figure out how to tell him this.

* * *

Three weeks after Austin's album released, and three weeks after she realized the truth, he finally manages to find a day during the week when neither one of them is busy. She tried to make excuses on the phone, saying she was out with Cassidy and then she was headed to the studio, but then someone knocks on her door and she opens it to see Austin standing in front of her.

"Oh," she mutters. "Hi."

He smiles a little. "Hi," he says, then shuts off his phone. She slowly takes hers away from her ear, then opens the door a little to let him in.

"So...what are you doing here?" she asks slowly.

He stops by the kitchen counter. "You know why," he says.

She sighs. "Look, if you're here to apologize, then don't bother. I don't blame you for what happened between us. It was... I mean, it was nothing, really. We've kissed before. We just...couldn't resist."

Austin's silent for a moment, looking down at the floor. Then he says, "Actually, that's not why I'm here. I mean, I'm glad to know you're not mad at me. But you are feeling something else, aren't you?"

Shocked and afraid that he knows the truth, that he finally managed to make her love him again, she stutters, "Wh-what? Feel what? What are you – I'm not feeling any different, what are you talking about?"

Austin laughs. "Calm down, it's not that bad," he says. "I just thought maybe you were worried about us now. You've been kind of avoiding me for the past three weeks."

"I haven't been –" She stops when he raises his eyebrows at her accusingly. "Okay, maybe a little. But can you blame me? I wasn't expecting you to kiss me like that out of nowhere."

He sighs. "No, I guess not," he says. "But you could've at least said something. I was so sure I'd lost you again."

She smiles at him, hoping he can't see through it. "No. You haven't lost me," she says, and then he steps towards her with open arms and hugs her. She wraps her arms around his waist, breathing in the smell of his shirt and remembering how she used to complain about his height when they would hug, but he knew she secretly loved it. She did then, and she still does now.

When he pulls back, he asks, "So, did you wanna hang out today? We haven't been to that diner downtown in a while."

She nods. "Sure. I just need to grab some things first, and we can leave." She walks into her room and gathers her things into her bag, but takes her time. Is she doing the right thing in staying his friend? Or is this just going to cause more pain for them later? She doesn't know. But for now, she's going to try. Maybe things will be okay between them again.

* * *

Things are most definitely not okay between Austin & Ally again, though she thinks only they can tell.

They go to the diner for lunch like he suggested, but when they arrive, silence falls between them, and it's incredibly awkward. He keeps pulling out his phone as if to check the time, and she finds herself raising her hand up to her neck searching for a necklace that's no longer there. When the food arrives, they eat slowly, but it's not until after they're done that anyone tries to make conversation.

"So..." Austin starts.

"So..." Ally repeats.

He laughs, but it dies down quickly. He says, "How's your album coming along? You've been working on it for months now."

She nods, glad to have something to talk about. "It's good," she says. "We're almost done. I think it'll be officially completed in a couple weeks."

"That's good," he replies.

Silence again.

"What about yours?" she asks.

"What?"

"Your album," she says. "Like, how's the reaction been, and all that? Has it been good, or..."

"Oh." He pauses. "Um, it's been good. I guess. I think it's still in the top ten on iTunes, but I keep forgetting to check. I think sometimes I just forget that it's even out in the first place. It's kinda hard to believe."

She nods in agreement. "I know how you feel. I was like that, too, when mine first came out. You get used to it after a while. It's the fame I keep forgetting about."

Austin laughs, and this time it lasts. "Yeah, me too. I was out the other day in the mall and a group of like three or four girls kept following me around for twenty minutes before one of them finally asked if they could take a photo with me, and then I realized why."

She just nods in understanding, having experienced similar situations herself when her album first came out, but not feeling up to recalling any specific one to tell. She lets the silence fall between them again, tense and awkward, and she's afraid of what it means for them.

The check comes, and for once she doesn't argue with him about letting her pay the bill like she used to. He looks at her expectantly as he pays, like he's waiting for her to suddenly shout for him to stop and let her pay some, too (he never does). But she doesn't, unsure of how to say anything at the moment, and once he's done they walk out of the diner and head back to her place quietly.

When they arrive at her apartment, they stop outside of her door. She reaches for her key in her bag, but it's not in its regular spot and she's forced to open her bag more and dig through it.

Austin watches quietly for a moment. Then he says, "I should probably head home."

She stops in her search and looks up. "Oh," she says. "Okay."

"Right." He pauses. "So, I'll see you later."

"Sure," she replies.

They stand there in front of her door, looking at each other but not saying a word.

Austin clears his throat.

"Well. Later, then." And he turns around and walks back down the hallway to the elevator, leaving Ally standing at her door, wondering what on earth she's going to do about them.

* * *

Her and Austin only see each other twice again in the next week, and she can tell they're both making excuses to avoid any more awkward confrontations like before. She knows why she's not making an effort to fix things again, afraid that she might say something she doesn't want him to know. But why is he avoiding her, too?

Their awkward tension is only getting worse, though, something she learns while out at the mall with Austin and Cassidy. It was originally just her and Cassidy, but Cassidy asked if they could invite Austin, and Ally couldn't find a way to tell her no (she did manage to tell her how she felt about him, but she thinks now Cassidy thinks that means Ally wants to spend more time him with him, not the other way around). He agreed, but she thinks that might've been because she texted him saying that _Cassidy_ wanted him to come, not her. But only ten minutes into the trip, they all knew it was a mistake.

As they head into a music store, Austin goes to browse through some records in the back, but Cassidy pulls Ally towards the front where a stand is showcasing the newer music. She tries to ignore the fact Austin's album is there as Cassidy speaks.

"Okay, what is going on with you two?" she asks, flipping through some of the CD's nearby.

Ally copies her actions, hoping to come across as having no idea what she's talking about. "What do you mean?" she asks. "Going on with who?"

Cassidy stops what she's doing to glare at Ally. She sighs.

"I don't know," she admits.

"What happened?" Cassidy asks. "I mean, I know you told me about the incident at his place last month, but I thought you two would've moved on from that by now. Or is it something else?"

Ally shrugs. "Like I said, I don't know what's going on between us. I avoided talking to him at all for a few weeks afterwards, but then he confronted me at my house. We seemed fine then, but five minutes later we're walking to that diner downtown and neither one of us has anything to say. It was just so...awkward. I hated it. I _still_ hate it." She pauses. "I mean, you know how I feel about him, Cass, and we know he feels the same way. But what if we're too late to get back to that again? What if all this dodging around and avoiding each other is making it worse? What if, when he goes on tour next month, I lose him forever?"

Cassidy sighs. She slowly sifts through some of the music on display before walking down the aisle a little more, thinking. Then she says, "Well, did you wanna get back together with him? Because you told Trish and I that you didn't, so he couldn't hurt you."

Ally nods. "I know. And I still feel that way." She pauses. "But what if I'm wasting my time pushing him away like this? Clearly, it's only getting us both hurt now. I don't wanna lose him, Cass, but I don't want us to get hurt again, either." Quietly, she adds, "I just wish I knew what to do."

Cassidy places a hand on Ally's shoulder, drawing her attention. "Hey. You'll figure it out," she says. "You always do. It'll take time, but I know you guys will be okay."

Ally smiles. "Thanks, Cassidy. I hope so, too."

Cassidy smiles back, then continues searching through the selection of music available. Finding nothing, they head to the back of the store to find Austin, then leave for the food court for lunch. Just as they reach it, Austin receives a phone call.

Pulling it out of his pocket, he frowns at the display. "Hang on, I gotta take this," he mutters to them, then walks away to answer the call. Ally and Cassidy watch him as he walks a little ways away, then get in line at one of the restaurants to order. They only have to wait five minutes when Austin comes back.

"Who called?" Cassidy asks.

"Jimmy," Austin says with a shrug. "He wanted to discuss the tour, but I couldn't hear him well, so I have to call him back after lunch."

"You're leaving?" Ally says, shocking the both of them.

"After lunch, yeah," he replies. When the look of shock doesn't disappear off Ally's face, he adds, "Just to my house. I'm not flying out to LA tonight, don't worry."

"Oh," she says. "I –I knew that."

Austin chuckles. "Sure, you did. That's why you looked so scared. Gonna miss me when I'm gone, are you?"

"Shut up," she replies, lightly smacking his chest. He just laughs again. The tension between them is gone for the moment as they smile at each other, but then they're staring for too long and he looks down and clears his throat, pulling her out of her brief stupor.

So much for normal.

* * *

When she gets back home that night, she can't stop thinking about Austin, and what they've become since the kiss. It's been over a month, and aside from the weeks in which they avoided each other, things have only gone downhill for them.

What is she supposed to do? Is it worth it to try and reconcile their relationship? Tell him that she really is still in love with him, and hope to see where that might take them? Even though he starts his tour in just a couple weeks? That only seems like a waste of time. She told him a month ago how awful his timing was when he first asked her to get back together; she would look ridiculous to him now.

Getting back together was out of the question.

But how else could they possibly fix this? They've done nothing to try and change things, and she has a feeling neither one of them is confident enough to try and do so. But if they just leave things as it is between them, all tense and awkward and quiet, where will that get them? Nowhere. He'll leave for tour and they won't bother trying to keep contact during their time apart and when he comes back he probably won't try talking to her again and then he'll be off to LA to record again and the only reason she'd know is because some media site would say so online. They would drift apart and in five years from now they would look back on their time together and fall sad at how things ended up between them. They wouldn't know each other anymore.

She sighs. She doesn't want that, either. But from the way things are going, they're destined to be apart. They can either watch from the sidelines as their friendship slowly withers away, or one of them can make the first move and pull the plug, avoiding months of unnecessary waiting around for a miracle that's not coming. There's no miracle for them. There never was.

She knows what she has to do now. She wishes it didn't have to be like this, but there doesn't appear to be any other options. She has to do this. If only she knew how.

* * *

Three days later, exactly eleven days away from Austin's big tour, Ally finds herself standing in front of Austin's apartment door, pacing back and forth as she contemplates what she's about to do.

It needs to be done, she knows this, but now that the time has come, she's afraid. She's thought through what she's going to say dozens of times, but the more she replays it in her head, the worse it sounds. Is this what it feels like to break up with someone? Like you have butterflies swarming inside you, just dying to burst out? Or it that nausea? She doesn't feel good. She's never done this before. Maybe she should back out. Go home and read a book, or write a song, anything but this. Anything but cutting off contact from the bestest friend she's ever had, and ever will have.

She stops her pacing and actually takes a step to turn around and leave, but before she can the door opens and Austin's standing there, looking at Ally with concern.

"I thought I heard someone outside," he says. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh..." Quickly, she runs through what she planned to say. "I – I need to talk to you."

"Oh. Okay." He opens the door wide enough to let her through. She walks straight past him and to the couch, but doesn't sit down.

Closing the door, Austin walks up to her. "You okay? Did you want something to drink? I can make coffee."

She tries not to think about how much that sounds like something you'd say to someone you just met, and shakes her head. "No. No, I don't want coffee. Can we sit?"

He shrugs, then sits down next to her on the couch.

"Okay. What did you wanna talk about?" he asks.

She takes a deep breath. Here goes nothing.

"It's...about us," she starts. "And the way things have been between us lately." She pauses to see if he might interject, but he says nothing. She continues, "I'm just – I'm worried about us. We used to be so great together, and I miss that. But I'm afraid we've waited too long to be able to ever get that back. See, if you haven't noticed already, things have been a bit...weird between us for some time now."

He nods. "I've noticed," he mutters.

"Okay. Well, that's good. I guess." She pauses. "Except it's also not good, because if you've noticed and I've noticed, then how come neither one of us has done anything? How come we've never tried to erase this tension between us, fill all those awkward silences with something as simple as small talk?"

This time, he does speak up. "Hey, I've tried –"

"But it hasn't been enough," Ally cuts him off. She stands. "Don't you see that? It hasn't been enough, and it will never be enough! Our friendship is too broken now, too beyond repair to put back together properly. We're falling apart, and I don't wanna stand by and watch it happen right before my eyes without doing anything about it."

Austin stands, too, angry. "What are you talking about? Broken? Beyond repair?" He hesitates. "Friendship? We've always had something more than that and you know it."

She ignores this. She knew he'd fight back, but trying to make it about them as something more is not a part of the plan. "That's besides the point," she mutters. "What I'm trying to say is that, this isn't working out anymore. We're just going to hurt each other one way or another, and I really don't want to keep trying to hold onto this by the thread just as you're about to go on tour. Because when you go, you won't come back. We won't bother keeping contact, and you know it. And then you'll come back to New York, only to pack up your things and move to LA and the next thing we know it's five years later and we're looking back on this wondering what happened and where did they go," she explains. "You won't come back. But I don't wanna wait three months for the inevitable to happen. So, I'm doing something about it. I'm – I'm pulling the plug. I'm cutting it off before it has a chance to really hurt me again."

When she finishes, Austin is looking at her like he can't believe what he's hearing. He opens his mouth to say something, but nothing comes out. He looks down, then sits on the couch again.

"I – I don't understand, Ally," he says quietly, and when he finally looks up at her she has to look away, unable to stand how sad he is right now. "Are you...are you saying you don't wanna be friends anymore? Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

She nods. "Yes," she says. "Yes, that's what I'm saying."

He sighs. She thinks it might be over, that she might be able to walk away from this when he says, "Is it – is it because of what I did? How I kept trying to get you to love me again? And the kiss? Because I swear, I'll stop. If it gets you to change your mind, I'll stop."

But she's shaking her head rapidly now as she looks at the floor. "You can't – you can't change my mind. My mind's already made up." She pauses. "But if you really need to know, then...yes. That's why we can't be friends."

"Ally –"

"No, don't!" she shouts, finally looking up. "Don't try to fix this! Don't you get it? We're done! Over! Finished! We've been done for months now! But you keep trying to make me feel as though it's my fault we broke up! As if _I'm_ the problem here! Well, guess what, Austin? You're wrong! It was never me, but I'm not gonna sit here and blame you for what happened. It just did, but you can't seem to let go of that." She walks past him towards the door, ready to leave, but he grabs her wrist and stands.

"Where is all of this coming from?" he asks. "Why are you suddenly so mad at me about something that happened so long ago? And something that's not true! I never meant to make you feel like it was your fault."

"Well, you did, anyway. Now, please, let me go."

"No, not until you give me a chance –"

"You've had enough chances," she snaps, and this is enough to make him loosen his grip on her arm and continue walking to the door. She expects to hear him follow her, or continue making excuses, but he doesn't.

She turns around. "I did love you, Austin," she says. "I really, really did. And I still do. But it's time to let go now." And before he can have a chance to figure out what this means, she opens the door and slams it closed behind her. The second she hears it click shut, the tears fall rapidly down her cheeks.

She wanted so badly for that to go over well – or, as well as ending a friendship involving two people in love with each other can be – but she never expected it to be like that. And she never expected it to hurt this much. Especially when he just gave up in the end. She wanted him to fight for her, all along. But he didn't. And now she's in more pain than the first time they broke up, because she knows it really is over for good this time. And it really is her fault.

* * *

 **So...**

 **\- XxMissWriter16xX: First of all, thank you! Second, I actually live in Southern Ontario, all the way up in Canada. There's like a three hour difference between that and California, cause I got this review around 1:30AM, haha.**

 **\- CrackFicGirl: Ah, that's so cool! I'm glad it was fun. Also, I _love_ that quote, and it probably would've been great inspiration for me if I hadn't already completed the story, haha (don't worry, though, I actually finished this a long time ago; I'm just taking my time updating). ALSO YOUR QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED SOON (at least, I hope so. For both our sakes).**

 **\- Lynchswift: THIS IS CLEAN, NORMAH. I'VE WRITTEN IT. THIS IS PART OF IT. I'LL WRITE THE OTHERS IF PEOPLE WANT 'EM (but, truth be told, I really am seriously considering writing the epilogue, so...we'll see).**

 **So, yeah. You guys are probably really mad. I get it. That wasn't exactly a happy conversation. But like I said, there's still another half left of this final chapter, and I'm sure you'll love how it ends – at least, I hope you will. It'd be kinda awkward if you didn't... But anyways. Thanks for reading! Tell me what you thought in the reviews (I'm really close to 100 reviews, and it'd be pretty cool if I hit that before the story finished, so...just saying). :D**


	14. Clean, Part 2

**Summary: Ally Dawson's story begins after she is accepted to her dream school in New York. When her talent is quickly recognized and fame is thrust upon her, she thinks she has it all together – until she meets Austin Moon, who turns her world upside down. / Based off _1989_ by Taylor Swift. Multi-Chapter.**

 **A/N: So, uh, sorry about the late update. I've actually been kind of really busy these past few days - partly because of work and/or school-related things, mostly because Boy Meets World has taken over my life. But let's not dwell on that. This is the last chapter! I hope you guys like it as much as I do.**

 **(Also, side-note – I hit over 100 reviews? That's insane! Thank you!)**

 **Carry on.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or _1989_ by Taylor Swift.**

* * *

Clean:  
 _"...and somehow that was everything."  
_ \- Taylor Swift

* * *

Ten.

Twenty-four hours later, and she still can't believe what she did. She's not sure what bothers her more – how it ended or how easily it all came to her. Maybe she was always mad at him about what happened. She doesn't know. She's not sure she cares, either.

Nine.

Two days later and she already misses him. His smile and his voice. The way his eyes would crinkle a little at the corners when he laughed. The way he would envelope her in a hug, as if she was the missing piece he always needed, and she needed, too. Him. Austin.

Eight.

Three days go by, and she hasn't seen anyone except a delivery man and Cassidy – the delivery man for her lunch (pizza) and Cassidy to see how she was doing (still hurting). She doesn't have to tell her what happened to know she messed up big time, but even then Cassidy attempts to reassure her that they were heading that way from the looks of how things were going. But she knows the truth. She seems to know a lot of truths lately, and none of them good. She messed with something she shouldn't have, changed the things fate had in store for them, and now she's paying the price.

Seven.

After four days, Austin finally attempts to make contact with her. She's alone in her living room, lying on the couch with the TV on but not paying attention to what's playing when her phone rings, and she immediately knows it's him (she never did change that ringtone).

She sits up and grabs the phone from where it's placed on the coffee table, but doesn't hit anything. She just watches his name flash on her screen as the song plays, waiting until it stops. Then she sits it back on the table and lies down. Only ten minutes pass when she hears the ringtone again, but when she picks it up she sees a text instead.

From: Austin  
Sent: 1:43PM  
To: Ally

 _Hey. Can we talk? Please?_

She stares at the message, considering it. But after another minute, she puts it back down without replying. She can't talk to him again. There's nothing she could say.

Six.

Five days have passed. Cassidy visits again. She tells her she came to get her out of the house for the day. Ally just shakes her head. She can't risk it. What if she runs into him? She can't let that happen.

After five minutes, Cassidy leaves, but not before saying:

"If you want to move on, Ally, you're gonna have to do a lot better than this."

Five.

Six days go by since she ended her friendship with Austin. She hasn't forgotten what Cassidy said to her, about needing to try harder if she wants to move on, but she's not sure she's up to anything at the moment, much less moving on – or moving at all, for that matter. She thinks she wouldn't mind living a life where she sleeps in until noon, stays in her pyjamas, and sits around watching TV and eating take out everyday. But it's also been six days since she stepped foot outside her apartment, so she decides to actually change into something half-decent when she wakes up and takes a walk around the block outside.

The fresh air is cool on her face, with October just beginning and it being the middle of autumn. The leaves are starting to change colours, and she passes many red, orange, and yellow ones scattered all over the sidewalk. She forgot how nice the outdoors can be, especially during this season. Fall might be her favourite season just for all of its colours and cool winds and the warm jackets. It's relaxing, being outside in the fall. She missed it.

Four.

It's been one week. Seven days. One hundred sixty-eight hours. Ten thousand eighty minutes. Six hundred four thousand eight hundred seconds. Too long. It's been too long since she last talked to Austin. Saw him, spoke to him, ruined him. And them. Everything. All because she was afraid of a little pain that may or may not have came. All because of fear.

She would take anything right now compared to this.

Three.

Three is usually a good number. Third times the charm. Rub a lamp and a genie will grant you three wishes. In Greek myths, there was always three Fates, and the three Big Gods. Three is generally seen as an all around good and lucky number. Most of the time.

She could definitely use one of those wishes today. Three is anything but good for her right now.

Two.

Nine days have gone past since Ally made her mistake. There's two days left until Austin leaves for his tour, and then for ever.

She's having a lot of difficulty holding onto hope today.

One.

Ten days go by before anything happens.

Cassidy comes over again, and she's surprised to find Ally up and dressed before twelve o'clock.

"Oh. Wow," she says when she sees her in a nice green sweater and jeans as she opens the door. Cassidy smiles. "I was half-expecting you to be buried under a pile of blankets and take-out containers today. But this a much nicer."

Ally just shrugs. "Yeah, well. I had to get up at some point." She opens the door wider to let her friend walk in, and follows her into the kitchen. "Plus, I was getting tired of eating pizza and Chinese food everyday. I need something real."

"What, like McDonald's down the street? Or is that too classy?"

Now Ally laughs. It feels weird. She hasn't even smiled in ten days, much less laughed. She misses it.

"No. I'm out of food, so I was gonna go to the grocery store later and buy some real food for myself," she explains.

"Okay. Why don't I come with you?" Cassidy asks, though Ally knows she wants to do more than just browse through the aisles of dairy products and soup cans with her friend.

She nods. "Okay," she replies. She collects her bag from her room, then follows Cassidy out into the hallway.

When they get to the grocery store downtown, Cassidy offers to push the cart while Ally picks through the food selections. As she's setting a bag of apples into the cart, Cassidy speaks.

"So. How have you been?"

Ally shrugs. She picks up an orange and examines it, then puts it back.

"Okay, I guess."

They turn the cart into the next aisle. Ally picks up a box of crackers and sets it in the cart. They walk quietly.

Cassidy says, "Are you sure you're alright? You haven't left your house in days. And you're missing school. That doesn't sound okay to me."

Ally sighs. "I know." She pauses as she grabs some cereal. She ran out two days ago. "I'll start school again next week. I just...I've needed time to be alone, I guess. Let what I did sink in before I have to start facing people and act like everything's alright in the world when it's not."

"Someone's melodramatic today," Cassidy mutters. Ally glares at her. "Sorry. But you know it's true."

She just shrugs again. "Whatever."

They continue walking through the store in silence, Ally picking out random items of food without really looking at them. They head to the front of the store to pay, then walk back into the parking lot where Cassidy's car is.

On the drive home, Cassidy turns down the radio's volume a little to ask Ally a question.

"So, did you wanna go somewhere else? Maybe the mall? Or the movies?"

Ally reaches over and turns the volume back up. "Not really," she says.

"Then what did you wanna do?"

Ally shrugs, then leans her head against the window. "Nothing."

Neither one of them speaks for a while, and before they know it, they're turning into the parking lot in front of their apartment building. They stop.

Ally goes to open her door to get out, but Cassidy says, "Wait."

Slowly, Ally lowers her hand. "What?"

She sighs. "I just – I want you to know something. I know after everything that's happened between you and Austin, you've felt like you had to cut yourself off from everyone around you in order to cope. And I get that. But you're not alone. You never have been." She pauses. "But you need to stop blaming yourself for these things, Ally. Relationships and friendships – they end sometimes. It happens. I – I can't say that I ever thought you would do something as crazy as end your friendship with Austin. I know how much you care about him, and maybe you thought you were doing the right thing. But maybe sometimes it's better to leave those things up to fate to decide. See where it takes you."

"But you told me we were destined to end, anyway," Ally says slowly.

"I was trying to reassure you that you were doing the right thing. I was wrong." Cassidy pauses. "Look, I don't know everything that went on between you two. I don't know why things went the way they did. But the connection that you guys had when you were together, it's something I've never seen before. You weren't just in love. You were so much more than that. You made each other happy. You made each other whole," she explains. "Maybe you weren't destined to be together, but maybe you were, and I just feel like your story isn't over yet. Not with the way things ended. I'm not saying you should get back together with him, but I just feel like you owe him at least one last goodbye. A proper goodbye. Not one filled with shouts and tears. You know?"

Ally doesn't respond to this, but she has to admit she does see her point. Maybe there was a better way to end things with Austin. Maybe she should've at least given him one more chance. He deserves at least that, doesn't he?

But as she walks into her apartment alone, she can't stop thinking about everything else Cassidy said about them. About how happy and in love they were. How they completed each other. And she wonders if they chance he deserves is something more than to just explain himself for the way things were when he came back. Maybe they both deserve a second chance. One more chance at love.

She knows what she has to do. And for once, she's confident that it's the right thing.

* * *

She wakes up the next day early. Austin leaves for his tour today, but just how soon she doesn't know. All she can think about is making it to him in time before he's gone, and she loses him forever. She can't afford that to happen.

Eating her breakfast quickly, she rushes out of her apartment and into the parking lot outside to her car. The time on her dashboard reads 8:14AM. Already, she's afraid she's running late. She remembers leaving for her tour at nine in the morning. She might be able to catch him just as he's leaving his apartment.

The time it takes her to drive from her apartment to his is all too long for her liking, and by the time she's parked out front the clock reads 8:27AM and she's afraid she really will miss him as she jumps out of her car and into the building. She runs straight to the elevators, rapidly pushing the number for his floor. Just as the doors close, she swears she catches a glimpse of a tall blonde walking past, but she doesn't get the chance to see if it's him as the doors shut and the elevator moves and she has to pray that he's still here.

The elevator reaches his floor, and then she dashes down the hallway to his door. She begins to pound on it, hoping the noise will wake him up enough to come and see who it is. But a minute passes by and her knocking slows down to a stop, and she's left staring at his door, lost.

The door to the apartment next door opens, and the person who lives there asks, "Are you looking for Austin?"

Ally resists the urge to roll her eyes at him – why else would she be pounding on his door at 8:30 in the morning? – and turns around.

She nods. "Yeah, Austin," she says. "I was hoping to catch him before he left, but..."

The neighbour points down the hallway to the elevators. "I just heard him leave maybe a couple minutes before you showed up."

"Really?" she asks. "Do you know where he was going?"

The man shrugs. "Sorry. I never really talked to him enough, though he did mention he was starting his tour soon. That's exciting."

Ally nods. "Yeah, it is." She sighs. "Well, thanks, anyway."

Just as she starts walking down the hallway, however, he speaks again.

"Wait. Now that I think about it, he did say something about a school yesterday."

Ally turns around. "A school?"

He nods. "Yeah, some music school downtown. Said he had one more thing he needed to do before he left. Does that mean anything to you?"

Ally smiles, then nods. "Yeah. It does. Thank you!" she shouts, and then she's running down the hallway again. The elevators can't go fast enough, and the second the doors open she's running through the lobby and out into the streets in the direction of the school. Her school.

She knows MUNY is close by, and she sees no point in trying to drive there in this traffic, but can she make it on foot? It's three blocks away, and by the time she gets there, he might be gone. But then she's turning the last corner, and she sees the building. She only feels all the more hopeful when she spots a tour bus – _his_ tour bus – parked out front.

She runs. She can catch him. She knows she can.

The front doors of the building open, but she doesn't pay attention to who walks out, only focusing on the bus. But then she hears his voice, and she stops.

"Ally?"

She turns around. It's him. She found him.

"Austin!" she says, and she rushes towards him and practically throws herself on him in a hug.

He laughs, wrapping his own arms around her. "What are you doing here?" he asks.

"What am _I_ doing here? What are _you_ doing here?" she asks.

He smiles. "I was hoping I might find somebody here before I left, but when I asked about her, they told me she hasn't been to school in two weeks."

She looks down. "Yeah. She's, uh, she's been dealing with a few things right now. School seemed pointless to her."

"Wow. Must've been some intense stuff."

She just nods.

Austin lets go of her, and she looks up.

"So, what are you doing here now? Since apparently you're not going to class."

"Right." She pauses. "I came looking for you, actually. You weren't at your apartment, but your neighbour told me you were here. I came as fast as I could."

"Why?"

"To tell you I'm sorry," she starts. "I'm sorry for the way things have been between us since you got back, and I'm sorry for how I've been acting for the past month. But mostly, I'm sorry for trying to push you away when the truth is, I need you. I need you, I miss you, and I still care about you, Austin. And if you'd let it happen, I want to start over with you. After you come back from your tour, I want to give you a second chance – give _us_ a second chance."

She stops, waiting for him to respond, but all he does is look at her like he can't believe what he's hearing.

"Austin?" she says.

He shakes his head. "Sorry," he mutters. "It's just... I didn't think I'd ever get to see you again. And now you're here, and you miss me, and you're telling me you want to try again. At us."

She nods. "Yes."

He's quiet for a moment, thinking, and she's afraid maybe she really was too late until he smiles.

"I'd love to try again, Ally," he replies.

She smiles back. "Really?"

He nods. "Really."

She breathes out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I was beginning to think I lost you again."

He shakes his head. "You could never lose me."

They stand there, just looking at each other and smiling, and she thinks she could stay like this forever when the horn honks on the tour bus, shaking them out of their trance.

"Well. Guess I'd better go," he says, pointing at the bus. "But I'll see you in three months."

She nods. "You will," she says.

He smiles again, and she watches him as he makes his way over to the door of the bus, waving at her before getting in and closing the door. She starts to turn around, planning to walk back to his place (she left her car there), but then the door is opening to the bus again and she turns around to see him running towards her and she barely gets his name out as he pulls her to him and kisses her hard.

She stumbles a little from the impact, but then she wraps her arms around his neck and pulls him close, deepening the kiss. She really could stay like this forever, but they can't, and so she leans back first. She laughs.

"You have a tour to get to, you know," she says.

He shrugs. "The tour can wait. You can't," he replies.

She smiles at him, then pulls herself out of his grip and lightly shoves him towards the bus. "Go. Your fans are waiting."

He smiles, but takes a step back. "Okay," he mutters. Louder, he adds, "I love you."

This time it's her that walks towards him, to wrap her arms around him in a hug. When she feels his arms around her, too, she whispers, "I love you, too," by his ear. He chuckles, then pulls back again.

"Now, I really need to go," he says.

"You do," she replies.

"I'll call you, though. Everyday."

She laughs. "You do that."

"I will. And –"

"Austin!" she says, but she's still smiling. "Go."

He opens his mouth to protest, but thinks better of it. Turning around, he walks back onto the bus, and this time when the door shuts behind him, she stays and watches, waiting until it starts up and drives, then turns a corner and disappears out of her sight.

He's gone again, but it's not forever, and as she walks back to her car she thinks about all the exciting things still in store for them.

Maybe there are miracles, after all.

* * *

 **\- CrackFicGirl: If you wanna write a 1989-based fic, I say go for it! I'm not gonna stop you, haha. I mean, technically, I decided to write mine because I heard of a GMW one and thought it sounded like an interesting idea. So, yeah, I'm more than fine with it. :)**

 **So, that's it! The end of 1989. But I know a lot of you are wondering about one more thing – will there be an epilogue? And I've decided that I'm not going to write one. I know a lot of you have been asking about it for some time, but this is how I want this story to end. I hope you can be okay with that.  
**

 **Also, one last note to say thank you so much to everyone who's been following along. Whether you've been reviewing, favouriting, or just silently reading, I appreciate it. So thank you for taking time to read my story. It means a lot to me. :)**


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